European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen released a statement on Saturday after a phone call with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in which she said “no agreement is feasible� if the “significant differences� on critical issues are not resolved.
Von der Leyen’s office issued a statement after her phone call with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson
“In a phone call today on the on-going negotiations between the European Union and the United Kingdom, we welcomed the fact that progress has been achieved in many areas.�
“Nevertheless, significant differences remain on three critical issues: level playing field, governance and fisheries. Both sides underlined that no agreement is feasible if these issues are not resolved.
“Whilst recognising the seriousness of these differences, we agreed that a further effort should be undertaken by our negotiating teams to assess whether they can be resolved.�
“We are therefore instructing our chief negotiators to reconvene tomorrow in Brussels.�
“We will speak again on Monday evening,� the statement read.�
The issues on which there are divergences have not changed since the beginning of negotiations.�
The UK is insistent on taking back control of its fishing waters, a topic that is politically charged but economically relatively insignificant to the UK. France, a heavyweight inside the EU, has been particularly insistent for the EU not to give ground on this front.�
The EU fears the UK is creating a low-regulation economy that props up its companies with state subsidies, thus undercutting the EU.
There is now less than a month before Britain’s transition period out of the EU ends on Dec. 31.�
If the two sides cannot reach a trade agreement, then they will trade on World Trade Organization terms � also known as a “no-deal Brexit� � which involves tariffs and quotas on goods and services flowing between the two countries.
If a deal is reached, it must still be ratified by the 27 members of the EU, meaning time is now running extremely short.
By Karim El-Bar� in London
Anadolu Agency