US TRADE representative Michael Froman will meet key EU officials in Brussels on Wednesday and Thursday, including Trade commissioner Cecila Malmström. The talks are aimed at rejuvenating the controversial, stalling Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) between the United States and the 28-member EU, but a decisive breakthrough looks unlikely before the end of the Obama presidency.

In recent weeks, French President Francois Hollande and German economy minister Sigmar Gabriel have indicated the talks are on the verge of failure. Reflecting this dynamic, former French president Nicolas Sarkozy - who is challenging Mr Hollande next year - has suggested pushing back the negotiations a year till after the French and German national elections, when a new US president will also be in the White House.

Should the TTIP talks collapse, it would be a major setback for Washington which has enjoyed significant success in a long-term, bipartisan goal of encouraging free trade growth across the world in the post-war period.