PARIS, Dhu-AlHijjah 21, 1437, Sep 22, 2016, SPA -- French business lobbies called on Thursday for the extension of talks between the European Union and the United States on a free trade deal, even as the French government called for an end to the negotiations, Reuters reported. Trade ministers from EU countries will meet in the Slovakian capital of Bratislava on Friday to discuss the issue, which has raised deep concerns among several member states. Washington and Brussels are officially committed to sealing the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) before U.S. President Barack Obama leaves office in January, but their chances of doing so are being eroded by approaching elections on both sides of the Atlantic and Britain's vote in June to leave the European Union. "The French industrial, services and trade companies (...) are asking for the extension of the negotiations between the EU and the United States until they reach ambitious and balanced results on all subjects," 12 business groups, including the Medef employers association, said in a joint statement. "Simply giving up on this transatlantic project of historical significance, after only three years of negotiations, appears to us as an extremely serious decision (...)," they said, even as they deemed the current United States' proposals as "unacceptable", notably regarding the access by European companies to U.S. markets. -- SPA 00:05 LOCAL TIME 21:05 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/w