[ad_1]
Earlier, the leaders said they would decide whether a deal was possible by the end of the weekend, but agreed to “take another step” after a phone conversation.
“We had a useful telephone conversation this morning,” said a joint statement by Mr. Johnson and Mr. von der Leyen, which the Commission chairman read on television. “We have discussed the main pending issues.”
“Our negotiating teams have been working around the clock lately,” the statement said.
VIDEO: Final decision on Brexit: UK withdraws from EU
EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier and his British counterpart David Frost negotiated in Brussels late Saturday and early Sunday. Negotiations will continue.
“Despite the exhaustion after almost a year of negotiations, although the deadlines have not yet been met, we believe it would be responsible to take another step at this time,” said the leaders. “Accordingly, we order our negotiators to continue negotiations and determine whether an agreement can be reached even at this last stage.”
Sunday was another in a series of negotiation deadlines that were to be final. Just over two weeks before Britain left the European Union single market, tensions are mounting.
On Saturday Britain dramatically declared that as of January 1, its warships would secure maritime borders with EU countries and would not allow EU fishing trawlers in common fisheries in UK waters if they parties decided to withdraw from the free trade agreement. In some of these fisheries, the British and Europeans have been fishing together for centuries.
The tone of Brussels was not so militant. Der der Leyen said the EU would respect UK sovereignty after the end of Britain’s post-Brexit transition on December 31, but neither country wanted to commit to core principles.
Britain will leave the single market and the EU customs union later this year. If no other liaison agreement is reached by then, both parties will have to comply with World Trade Organization (WTO) rules, which means tariffs, quotas and a lot of paperwork for importers. Furthermore, failed negotiations could jeopardize relations between London and Brussels for many years.
“Everything is possible”
Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin told the British broadcaster that the 97 percent deal negotiated. “It seems to me that the remaining 3 percent should not be left out of the capacity of the two countries to overcome the differences,” he said. – The fact that they have traded late is in itself an important sign. The continuous dialogue gives me hope. “
Much of the text of a potential trade deal is said to have been drafted, but Britain rejects Brussels’s request for a mechanism that would allow the EU to react quickly if UK and EU trade rules become uneven over time. and they put continental companies at a disadvantage.
“Protecting the single market is a red line for the European Union. What we have proposed to the UK respects British sovereignty. That could be the basis for a deal, “said a senior EU source, echoing von der Leyen’s earlier statement.
In London, a spokesman for the Johnson government emphasized late Saturday that after 47 years of tight economic integration, Britain was ready to stand down and fend for itself. The representative added that the current EU proposal was unacceptable.
“The prime minister will do his best in this process, but he says very clearly: any agreement must be fair, it must respect the fundamental position that the UK will be a sovereign state in three weeks,” the source said.
Earlier, the British government said that it had foreseen all possible scenarios for possible problems after December 31, adding that “nobody has to worry about our food, medicine or [kitų] vital supply chains ”.
[ad_2]
