[ad_1]
The UK has demanded “more realism” from the European Union ahead of the crucial post-Brexit trade talks, set to kick off in London.
However, the mood was soured by reports that the British government was seeking to rewrite the Withdrawal Agreement that the two parties have already signed.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s chief negotiator David Frost said “we must move forward this week” if a deal is to be reached before the end of the post-Brexit transition period in December.
For that, “we need to see more realism from the EU about our status as an independent country,” he said before talks with EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier.
“If they cannot do that in the very limited time we have left, then we will be negotiating on terms like the EU has with Australia, and we are stepping up our preparations for the end of the year.”
Talks have been stalled for months on issues such as the extent of the EU’s access to UK fishing waters, state aid and fair competition rules.
Both sides say an agreement must be reached before an EU summit in mid-October.
But there was concern in Brussels after The Financial Times reported that Johnson planned to legislate to nullify parts of the Withdrawal Agreement reached before Britain left the EU in January.
“Everything that has been signed must be respected,” Barnier warned, saying he would discuss it with Frost.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin said that the UK’s trade talks with the European Union would be “null and void” if the Withdrawal Agreement he signed is not fully implemented.
“The Withdrawal Agreement is an international treaty and we expect the UK government to implement and adhere to what was agreed. We are confident that they will do so or they would override the talks process,” Martin told the Irish Examiner in an interview.
Read more:
UK seeks Ireland’s intervention in the NI Protocol in exchange for land bridge assistance
Government Raises UK Concerns Over Northern Ireland Protocol Reports
The FT said legislation to be tabled in the UK Parliament this week would undermine Northern Ireland’s customs and state aid deals.
Under the protocol, Northern Ireland will follow some of the EU rules to ensure that the border remains open.
Johnson accepted the Withdrawal Agreement last year, but now believes there is an “unforeseen” risk that it will leave Northern Ireland isolated from the rest of the UK, the Daily Telegraph reported.
“I am confident that the British government will implement the Withdrawal Agreement, an obligation under international law and a prerequisite for any future partnership,” said the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
Johnson’s spokesman said the UK government was “fully committed to the implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement and the Northern Ireland protocol, and we have already taken many practical steps to do.”
But it said it was taking “limited and reasonable steps to clarify specific elements” of the protocol in UK law, to “remove any ambiguity.”
“This would be a very reckless way to proceed,” Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said in response to the FT report.
Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said the UK would show “utter disregard for the lives and concern of the people of Ireland” if it backtracks on the Brexit deal.
Belgian MEP Philippe Lamberts said that without an explicit commitment from the UK that they “intend to comply with your signature” and honor the Withdrawal Agreement in its entirety, there is no point in negotiating another treaty on the future relationship with the UK. .
Lamberts, who is a member of the European Union’s Brexit Steering Committee, said that the conditions within the deal that give “special treatment to Northern Ireland” are something that UK Brexiters hate, but “that was the point. price of the deal. ”
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, he said the deal was negotiated for over a year under two British Prime Ministers, including a renegotiation with Johnson, and that it has been “sealed and signed” by him and ratified by both the UK and the Parliament of the EU. .
Lamberts said the UK cannot “unilaterally clarify” something that has been agreed between two parties.
Concerns have been felt in the currency market, where the pound slid against the dollar and the euro for fear that the talks between the UK and the EU would fail and seriously disrupt trade relations.
However, some analysts suggested that the Northern Ireland dispute was a move by London to increase pressure on trade talks.
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said the rise in rhetoric from London and Brussels was inevitable as “saber rattling” and “stance” as the deadline approached.
Johnson has said that not reaching a deal would still be a “good result” for Britain, calling it an “Australian-style” deal.
However, Australia trades with the EU under World Trade Organization rules and tariffs, which would cause a significant disruption to inter-channel trade.
Britain formally left the 27-member EU on January 31, but remains bound by EU rules until the end of December as it tries to work out the new terms of their relationship.
The head of the legal department of the UK government resigns over the threat of the Brexit deal – FT
the The head of the British government’s legal department has resigned on suggestions that Prime Minister Boris Johnson is threatening to void the Brexit divorce deal with the European Union, the Financial Times said today.
The newspaper said Jonathan Jones was leaving his job due to a dispute with Johnson’s office over his alleged plans to undermine the Withdrawal Agreement treaty signed in January in connection with the Northern Ireland protocol.
[ad_2]