BERLIN (Reuters) - Chancellor Angela Merkel warned British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in a telephone call on Tuesday that a new deal on Brexit appeared "very unlikely", a government source said.

The source pointed out that the content of the communication indicates that reaching an agreement has become "practically impossible" for the British government, adding that this is a new position for the European Union.

According to the source, Merkel ruled out an agreement due to the lack of new proposals from London on the situation in Ireland, and the Union rejected the proposal to leave Northern Ireland from the customs union.

The talks with Johnson and Merkel came amid tough negotiations in Brussels to avoid a British exit without an agreement on October 31.

The news agency AFP quoted a European source in Brussels as saying that there was no progress during the negotiations on Monday, and that the amendments introduced by London "does not change much."

Boris Johnson, who took office at the end of July, was determined to remove his country from the European Union on October 31, after two delays under former prime minister Theresa May.

Johnson has been pushing ahead despite a British law that would force him to ask for a new deadline if an agreement is not reached on October 19, immediately after a European summit.

Speculation in the UK suggests that Johnson wants to dodge by creating a loophole in that law, or by asking a European Union state to veto the Brexit request.