"Another shock in international relations is less": Britain and the European Union agree on a trade deal

The UK and the EU were able to agree on a Brexit trade deal.

The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom Boris Johnson announced this on Twitter.

The deal is done.

pic.twitter.com/zzhvxOSeWz

- Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) December 24, 2020

The British Parliament intends to meet on December 30 to vote on the agreement with the European Union. 

The head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said that the EU and the UK will remain allies and continue cooperation.

It is time to "leave Brexit behind," she said.

“The UK remains a trusted partner, we remain allies.

We share the same interests ... The European Union and the United Kingdom will stand shoulder to shoulder to achieve our common global goals, "RIA Novosti quoted her as saying.

Recall that the UK officially left the European Union on January 31, 2020.

Then London agreed to temporarily comply with the current trade rules - until December 31, 2020.

After this date, the transition period ended.

Without an additional trade agreement, new duties would have been imposed on imports of goods to the UK from mainland Europe from January 1.

According to the British media, such an outcome could lead to higher prices for food, medicine and basic necessities.

Other economic barriers between the country and the EU could affect shipping and commercial activities.

Meanwhile, the European Commission noted that the parties to the agreement will not have time to complete all legal procedures, in particular, to ratify the document before January 1, however, they proposed to start applying the norms prescribed in the document on a temporary basis within two months - until February 28, 2021.

During this time, the document must fully come into force.

Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Grushko said that the Russian side positively assesses the conclusion of an agreement between Great Britain and the European Union.

“We have a positive attitude to this, because there has been less another shock in international relations,” RIA Novosti quotes him.

Former British prime ministers also welcomed the agreement between London and the EU.

Theresa May, who headed the cabinet from 2016 to 2019, called the event good news.

Very welcome news that the UK & EU have reached agreement on the terms of a deal - one that provides confidence to business and helps keep trade flowing.

Looking forward to seeing the detail in the coming days.

- Theresa May (@theresa_may) December 24, 2020

“It's great news that the UK and the EU have reached agreement on the terms of the deal, which gives confidence to businesses and helps support trade.

I look forward to more details in the coming days, "she wrote on Twitter.

A similar point of view is shared by David Cameron, who was May's predecessor and served as prime minister from 2010 to 2016.

“The trade deal is very welcome - and is an important step in building a new relationship with the EU as friends, neighbors and partners.

Congratulations to the UK negotiating team, ”Cameron wrote on his Twitter account.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel called the signing of the agreement between London and the EU "historic" event.

“The future relations between the EU and the UK are clearly regulated.

This is of historical significance, "RIA Novosti quotes a fragment of Merkel's statement.

She noted that the FRG government intends to study the text of the agreement closely in the future.

Commenting on the news about the signing of a document between the UK and the EU, President of the Center for Strategic Communications Dmitry Abzalov suggested that a large number of related agreements would be concluded in the near future.

“In fact, the process rested on a number of points, but one of the most important was the quota for fish catch.

It should also be noted that some difficulties are created in financial matters, in the industrial part ... But in fact, Boris Johnson did what he promised.

In the near future, a whole array of agreements will be signed, "Abzalov said in an interview with RT.

He also added that the deal must still be approved by the UK Parliament.

However, the analyst believes that no problems will arise this time at this stage.

“We managed to avoid the most dangerous thing: if from the first day any agreements ceased to be in effect ... Therefore, this is a tough, difficult decision in which Johnson had to make a certain compromise,” the expert concluded.

In turn, Vladimir Schweitzer, head of the department of social and political research at the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences, believes that the discovery of a new COVID-19 strain in the UK could play a certain role in the coordination process.

Recall that earlier, a number of states, against the background of these events, stopped air traffic with the United Kingdom.

“It was this story with the coronavirus that made Johnson's situation very difficult now.

He had to find some kind of move that would somehow soften everything.

He found this move, they agreed on a number of issues.

I believe that this external factor played a decisive role, "the expert told RT.

At the same time, as the analyst believes, it is too early to say that everything has been resolved and the UK and the European Union are waiting for "a peaceful divorce and a soft Brexit."