Most Germans fear that the free-trade deal being negotiated by the United States and Europe will hurt their national interests, a recent poll has found.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership ( TTIP ) came into the spotlight last week when Greenpeace leaked two thirds of its secret text, which appears to show Washington's attempts to water down EU environmental and public health rules.

Seventy percent of those sampled by the German Infratest dimap pollster for the public broadcaster ARD said the TTIP deal would be disadvantageous for Germany, with only 17 percent having a favorable opinion of the deal.

The same poll revealed on Wednesday that 79 percent of the German public feared the pact would weaken consumer protections. Eighty-three percent of respondents said that talks on the secretive deal should be conducted in the open.

The questioned sample was split over whether TTIP would be beneficial for German business, with 47 percent believing it would not help while 41 percent thought it would.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said last week that she hoped the negotiations on the agreement to expedite trade in goods and services across the Atlantic would be wrapped up soon, possibly by the end of 2016.