On the eve of the start of FTA negotiations with Britain, the European Union's chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, spoke about the red lines in the Brussels talks, and his personal relationship with Prime Minister Boris Johnson. The following are excerpts from the interview conducted by Der Spiegel:

 € الفصل The second chapter of the British exit talks from the European Union started on Monday. Will these negotiations on the future relationship between the Union and Britain be easier or more difficult than those related to the exit treaty?

- General de Gaulle once said that when the will is there, there is a way. We have the will to reach an agreement, and this was true during the exit negotiations and is still so. The problem is that we don't have much time, but I am optimistic that it will be enough to build solid foundations.

• The decision on the withdrawal agreement was repeatedly postponed, and in the end, the negotiations proved to be much more difficult than expected. What awaits us this time?

What could make these negotiations more difficult now is time pressure; not because we want that, but because Boris Johnson does not want to extend the transitional period currently in effect, after the end of the year. This means that Britain will leave the domestic market and the customs union at the end of the year. So we need to complete an agreement, by then.

• The negotiations may be complicated, too, because the strong feeling of loneliness the Europeans have shown in recent months seems to be decomposing. What can you do to boost cohesion?

The Europeans will stay together, and this is the truth, not desire. The 27 European Affairs Ministers unanimously approved my negotiating mandate. But the unit does not happen by chance. Last week, she sat in Berlin at a cabinet meeting with Chancellor Angela Merkel and German federal ministers, who are dealing with Britain's exit from the European Union. I made similar visits to Paris and Warsaw, and listened to the concerns and sensitivities of member states, and this creates an appropriate atmosphere of confidence.

• Nevertheless, fault lines began to appear, as the Netherlands is concerned about its ports, Germany is concerned about the auto industry, and France about the access of its fishermen to British territorial waters .. How do you intend to formulate a joint negotiating position for the European Union?

Of course there are differences, and they come from different distances to Britain, the different economic interdependence and the degree of ideological proximity. What unites all union members, however, is their interest in their economies and, consequently, in the integrity of the single market.

• Johnson says he is striving to reach an agreement along the lines of the European Union's free trade agreement with Canada. More recently, the British government has threatened to cut off talks if there is no clarity on this by June.

I always say calm must be negotiated. Given the red lines drawn by the British for their future relations with the European Union, it is clear that it is not possible to consider a free trade agreement, such as the one that we concluded with Canada, South Korea or Japan; but each agreement has its own advantages according to the contracting parties. The critical difference between Britain and Canada, for example, is that Canada is more than 5,000 km from Europe, while Dover (English) is only 42 km from Calais (French). This also has implications for the content of the agreement.

What unites all union members is their interest in their economies, and hence the integrity of the single market.