WASHINGTON, March 14 (Xinhua) -- A bipartisan group of 114 House members sent a letter Thursday to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer, urging the Trump administration to include agriculture in a potential trade deal with the European Union (EU).
"We write today to urge you to insist on the inclusion of agricultural products in upcoming trade negotiations with the European Union," they said, adding that agriculture is "the source of a great number of trade barriers and irritants" in the U.S.-EU trade relationship.
"Thus, an agreement with the EU that does not address trade in agriculture would be, in our eyes, unacceptable," they added.
The United States and the EU have been locked in trade disputes, with Washington refusing to exempt Brussels from tariffs the Trump administration imposed on steel and aluminum imports worldwide, and threatening to levy punitive duties on cars and car parts.
During a visit to Washington in July, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker and President Trump agreed to set up an executive working group to address the bilateral trade spat. They vowed to "work together toward zero tariffs, zero non-tariff barriers, and zero subsidies on non-auto industrial goods."
The European Commission adopted draft negotiating mandates on January 18, saying the EU will work toward a trade agreement with the United States that is "strictly focused on the removal of tariffs on industrial goods, excluding agricultural products."
The lawmakers said in the letter that they were "deeply disappointed that the European Commission's draft negotiating mandates specifically excluded agricultural products and that Commission officials continue to state publicly that they will not discuss agriculture in the negotiations."
Lighthizer said in his testimony before the Senate Finance Committee on Tuesday that the United States is "at a complete stalemate" with the EU in the trade talks.
"We're working on other areas with the realization that there's not going to be any (free trade agreement) without agriculture," he said.
Signatories of the letter warned that an agreement that fails to include agricultural products "would be deficient, significantly jeopardizing Congressional support."
