Johnson speaks at a news conference addressing the government’s
response to the novel coronavirus COVID-19 outbreak, at 10 Downing
Street in London on March 12, 2020. SIMON DAWSON / POOL /
AFP
British and European negotiators broke off their talks
on a post-Brexit trade deal without agreement Friday and handed off
the task of clearing the logjam to Prime Minister Boris Johnson and
EU chief Ursula von der Leyen.
The leaders will hold a telephone call on Saturday after their
envoys Michel Barnier and David Frost broke up after an arduous
week of day and night meetings without a breakthrough.
“We agreed today that the conditions for an agreement are not
met, due to significant divergences on level playing field,
governance and fisheries,” the EU’s Barnier and UK’s Frost said, in
a tweeted joint statement.
“We agreed to pause the talks in order to brief our principals
on the state of play of the negotiations. President Von der Leyen
and Prime Minister Johnson will discuss the state of play tomorrow
afternoon,” they said.
Barnier was expected to leave London, and the leaders’ call will
take place late on Saturday afternoon.
The pause to talks that have dragged on for eight months came
despite a tight deadline, with Britain due to leave the EU single
market on December 31 with or without a follow-on trade
agreement.
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A deal is needed to avoid deep disruptions to both economies —
but especially Britain’s — that have already been brought low by
the coronavirus pandemic.
Despite the tight timetable, on Friday France threatened to veto
any deal that fails short of their demands on ensuring fair trade
and access to UK fishing waters.
Last-minute debates were also taken up by haggling over an
enforcement mechanism to govern any deal.
“If there’s a deal that isn’t a good one, we’d oppose it,”
France’s minister for European affairs Clement Beaune told Europe 1
radio, adding: “Every country has the right to veto”.
A European diplomat told AFP that Belgium, the Netherlands,
Spain and Denmark share France’s concerns that in the rush to
conclude a deal, Barnier will give too much ground on rules to
maintain fair competition.
Britain’s nearest neighbours suspect Germany and the European
Commission are too keen to agree a deal to avoid damaging economic
fallout.
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“The Union has made the necessary gestures to reach a
compromise. It is up to the British to make a move,” said French
foreign ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll.
‘Time in very short supply’
Germany currently holds the EU’s rotating presidency and is also
the bloc’s biggest economy and most influential member.
Asked about the state of the talks, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s
spokesman said Europe “is ready to reach an agreement with Great
Britain, but not at any price”.
Thus far, the European capitals have remained united behind
Barnier, who has been battling Frost as Johnson faces his own
choice about whether to compromise.
Ursula von der Leyen addresses media on the second day of a
European Union (EU) summit at The European Council Building in
Brussels on October 2, 2020. (Photo by JOHN THYS / POOL /
AFP)
Johnson’s official spokesman told reporters: “What is certain is
that we will not be able to agree a deal that does not respect our
fundamental principles on sovereignty and taking back control.”
In a display of pressure on Johnson, veteran Brexit campaigner
and former British MEP Nigel Farage said the outcome was now up to
the leaders.
“This really is Boris Johnson’s moment of truth,” Farage
tweeted.
‘Complicated’
The need for a quick deal was in large part dictated by the
European Parliament, which will need to see the text within days if
it is to properly examine it in time to ratify it by the end of the
year.
European leaders will also want to see what Barnier is planning
at their summit on December 10.
The host of next week’s summit, European Council president
Charles Michel, hailed Barnier’s work and urged unity “until the
last minute, the last second of the procedure”.
Whatever the outcome, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte warned
businesses to be ready for what is coming in less than a month’s
time.
“Even with an agreement it will be more complicated. And without
an agreement, it will be even more complicated,” Rutte told
reporters in The Hague.
AFP