xi's moments
Home | Europe

London and Brussels risk trade war over troubled post-Brexit protocol

By EARLE GALE in London | China Daily Global | Updated: 2022-05-12 09:14

A sign reading 'NI protocol breaks Belfast agreement' is seen affixed to a lamp post at the Port of Larne, Northern Ireland, Oct 13, 2021. [Photo/Agencies]

A diplomatic row and trade conflict between the United Kingdom and European Union loomed on Wednesday, after London signaled it would tear up a legally binding international agreement that both sides signed.

The agreement, known as the Northern Ireland Protocol, was part of the deal negotiated ahead of the nation's exit from the bloc on Jan 31, 2020.

It was aimed at avoiding a hard border on the island of Ireland - between EU member Republic of Ireland and UK member Northern Ireland - because it had been a flashpoint in the past for sectarian violence between factions that believed Northern Ireland belonged within the UK and those that wanted a united Ireland.

But, almost before the protocol was signed, pro-UK elements in Northern Ireland criticized it for keeping the province within the EU's single market for goods. They said that meant the province was treated differently to the rest of the UK, which made it easier for separatists to break away.

On Tuesday, after the protocol came under renewed scrutiny following elections in Northern Ireland that were won by a separatist party, the UK rejected the EU's latest proposals to amend it, saying they would "worsen the current trading arrangements".

'Negotiated solution'

The UK's Foreign Secretary Elizabeth Truss added that while she wanted a "negotiated solution", she was prepared to take "action to stabilize the situation in Northern Ireland if solutions cannot be found".

Experts said she was clearly threatening to tear up the protocol to appease the pro-British Democratic Unionist Party, which said it would block the devolved Northern Ireland Assembly while the protocol existed.

But the EU's chief negotiator Maros Sefcovic said the EU's "robust package" offered "creative, practical solutions" and should not be dismissed out of hand.

He said the bloc had been "bending over backward" to find solutions that London could live with, and what was needed was "political will and genuine commitment "directed at finding "joint solutions".

Former UK prime minister Theresa May said in Parliament on Tuesday that London should show a "willingness to abide by treaties which it has signed".

Micheal Martin, the Republic of Ireland's leader, told the BBC that he had lobbied UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson not to abandon the deal.

"I shared my view that this would be the wrong approach," he said. "It would be destabilizing in Northern Ireland and would further erode trust."

The Financial Times reported that Johnson will unveil his next move in the coming days.

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz told reporters: "No one should unilaterally cancel, break, or in any way attack the settlement we have agreed together."

Alexander De Croo, Belgium's prime minister, said a trade war could follow if that happens.

"Our message is quite clear," he said. "Don't touch this."

Global Edition
BACK TO THE TOP
Copyright 1995 - . All rights reserved. The content (including but not limited to text, photo, multimedia information, etc) published in this site belongs to China Daily Information Co (CDIC). Without written authorization from CDIC, such content shall not be republished or used in any form. Note: Browsers with 1024*768 or higher resolution are suggested for this site.
License for publishing multimedia online 0108263

Registration Number: 130349