Germany has dropped its opposition to starting talks on an EU-US free trade agreement, leaving France alone to battle for exemptions for European artists. “Today, Germany has withdrawn its concerns and will approve a negotiating mandate for the EU commission on Friday,” German economy ministry spokeswoman Julia Schwartz said on Wednesday (12 June) at a press conference in Berlin. EU trade ministers are to take a decision on the Union’s free trade blueprint at a meeting in Luxembourg at the end of this week. … Germany had earlier sided with France in saying that “culture” should be exempt from the...