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Taoiseach Micheál Martin will join other EU leaders for a two-day summit in Brussels today, which will be dominated by the EU’s relations with Turkey and Europe’s response to the crackdown on protesters in Belarus protesting the outcome. of the recent elections.
Mr Martin will address the summit tomorrow on the impact of the Brexit negotiations in Ireland, including the controversy over the UK’s internal market bill, which violates the Northern Ireland Protocol.
During dinner tonight, the leaders will discuss the strategic relationship with Turkey in light of the Turkish incursions into Greek and Cypriot waters in connection with recently discovered natural gas fields.
Cyprus wants the EU to take a much tougher stance against Turkey, and that issue is delaying an overall EU response to the crackdown in Belarus.
The EU has been unable to agree on sanctions against important figures of the Alexander Lukashenko regime because Cyprus first wants what it calls solidarity from other EU capitals with Turkey.
The leaders will also discuss the poisoning of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny and the recent EU-China summit.
Tomorrow, the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will provide leaders with a brief status of the Brexit trade negotiations, which are in the final round of talks scheduled in Brussels this week.
A senior EU official said that because Ireland was the country most affected by Brexit, the Taoiseach would have the floor to address other leaders.
It is understood that Mr Martin will present his thoughts on the prospect of a deal in the coming weeks and the impact of the UK Internal Market Act, which, if passed into law, will nullify parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Meanwhile, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has said that he hopes that Britain and the European Union will reach a trade agreement free of tariffs and quotas, in an interview published by online news site The Currency.
“I still think there will be an agreement. There will be no quotas, no tariffs, some form of minimum standards and control over state aid and fishing,” Varadkar was quoted as saying.
“I think it can still be done.”
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