Daily Management Review

Merkel refuses yet another negotiation with May


12/12/2018


New negotiations on an agreement between the EU and London are impossible, Angela Merkel said at a meeting of her party’s faction after the meeting with the British Prime Minister.



World Economic Forum
World Economic Forum
Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, refused to offer the British Prime Minister Theresa May to renegotiate the agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the EU (Brexit). "We said that there would be no further revision of the treaty," the dpa agency quoted the Chancellor referring to unnamed participants of the CDU parliamentary faction, which took place on Tuesday, December 11, after the meeting between Merkel and May in Berlin.

At the same time, the head of the German government expressed confidence in a possibility of reaching an agreement and avoiding the unregulated Brexit. According to her, the British deputies, who opposed the signing of an agreement with the European Union in its current version, also do not want their countries to leave the EU without a corresponding agreement, because they consider this option the most unfavorable.

According to Reuters, at a meeting of her faction, Merkel stressed that the EU is ready to discuss additional "guarantees" with London. The point is to exclude a possibility that the United Kingdom will automatically become part of the customs union with the EU after 2021 due to the unresolved issue of the border with Ireland, the agency writes, referring to several participants in the meeting.

The main point of contention, according to Merkel, is the guarantee of the so-called "backstop" regime - the special conditions on the border between the EU-Ireland and Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK.

Some deputies of the Conservative Party fear that the time-limited rules on the “backstop” regime will become permanent and will prevent, in particular, conclusion by London of new free trade agreements. They insist on limiting these rules in time. The EU rejects these claims, stating that guarantees cannot be temporary.

Earlier, May announced indefinite postponement of vote in the British House of Commons on the Brexit agreement scheduled for December 11. She acknowledged that she would lose the vote "with a significant lag" and expressed her intention to invite Brussels to conduct additional negotiations on the amendment of the agreement. According to Theresa May, she will tell her colleagues from the EU about "understandable fears" of deputies of the lower house of the British Parliament and will require "further guarantees." For a successful Brexit, a compromise is needed on all sides, the British Prime Minister stressed.

In turn, the European Commission ruled out the possibility of further negotiations. "Our position has not changed," - said official representative of the department. According to the chairman of the Brussels Office, Jean-Claude Juncker, the agreement reached is "the best possible". After May’s decision, Brussels announced convening of an emergency EU summit on 13 December.

The UK plans to leave the EU on March 29, 2019.

source: reuters.com, dw.de