EU, UK leaders to meet as post-Brexit talks stall

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EU, UK leaders to meet as post-Brexit talks stall

2020-06-02 20:21 Last Updated At：20:30

The European Union's top executive and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will meet this month for talks that could give new momentum to the stalled post-Brexit negotiations.

As a fourth round of talks between teams of negotiators resumed Tuesday with little hope for a breakthrough on a future trade deal, the bloc's executive arm said a meeting is planned between EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Johnson by the end of June.

Daniel Ferrie, the commission spokesperson for EU-U.K. negotiations, said the date and the format of the encounter has yet to be determined.

The U.K. left the political institutions of the EU on Jan. 31, but it remains inside the EU’s tariff-free single market and customs union until the end of the year. That so-called transition period can be extended by two years although a deal to do so has to be made by July 1, according to the legal documents accompanying Brexit.

Johnson has repeatedly said he will not extend the transition period beyond Dec. 31.

Ahead of this week's round of talks, Britain accused the EU of making unbalanced demands, while EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier warned in an interview with the Sunday Times that there would not be an “agreement at any cost.”

The three previous rounds of discussions have failed to produce much headway, notably around fishing rights. The U.K. wants a fisheries deal to be a standalone agreement whereby the two sides negotiate access and quotas. The EU, for its part, has sought to link fisheries to other trade issues.

Another major roadblock is the so-called level playing field. The EU is concerned that Britain may diverge on rules and regulations to gain a competitive advantage and wants to make sure that EU standards will be kept by London in return for a high degree of access to the single market.

“The U.K. has been taking a step back – two steps back, three steps back – from the original commitments,” Barnier said. “The U.K. negotiators need to be fully in line with what the Prime Minister signed up to with us. Because 27 heads of state and government and the European Parliament do not have a short memory.”

Despite the apparent stalemate, Johnson's spokesman, James Slack, insisted progress could be made.

“We hope this latest round is constructive and we hope that it will keep the process on track ahead of the high-level meeting later this month," he said.

Jill Lawless in London contributed to this report.

Follow AP’s full coverage of British politics and Brexit trade negotiations at https://apnews.com/Brexit

EU, Britain and Spain say significant progress made in talks on post-Brexit status of Gibraltar

2024-04-12 23:26 Last Updated At：23:31

MADRID (AP) — British and Spanish foreign ministers said a new round of talks held Friday over the status of the disputed territory of Gibraltar following Britain’s exit from the European Union were productive and significant progress was made.

The meeting was between Spain's José Manuel Albares, Britain’s David Cameron and European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic in Brussels. Gibraltar Chief Minister Fabian Picardo also attended. It was the first time representatives from the four areas had come together for talks on the issue.

In a statement after the meeting, the parties said "discussions took place in a constructive atmosphere, with significant progress achieved.

“General political lines have been agreed (on), including on airport, goods and mobility. Negotiations will continue over the coming weeks to conclude the EU-UK Agreement,” it added.

All sides are eager to clinch a deal before European elections in June.

Britain left the European Union in 2020 with the relationship between Gibraltar and the bloc unresolved. Talks on a deal to ensure people and goods can keep flowing over the Gibraltar-Spain border have made halting progress in the 19 rounds of negotiations so far, but both Spanish and U.K. officials have recently expressed optimism about a deal.

In Britain’s 2016 Brexit referendum, 96% of voters in Gibraltar supported remaining in the EU. The tiny territory on Spain's southern tip depends greatly on access to the EU market for its 34,000 inhabitants.

Gibraltar was ceded to Britain in 1713, but Spain has maintained its sovereignty claim ever since. Relations concerning the Rock, as it is popularly referred to in English, have had their ups and downs over the centuries.

A major sticking point has been who controls Gibraltar’s airport, which under the proposed free-movement deal would be an external border of the EU. The U.K. and Gibraltar have resisted Spain’s insistence that Spanish border officials be based at the airport, which is also home to a Royal Air Force base.

The British Foreign Office said Thursday that while it did not expect a final agreement Friday, "getting senior political figures from the UK, European Commission, Spain and Gibraltar in one room is significant.”

Associated Press writer Jill Lawless reported from London.