In Brussels, we entered the final stretch to find an agreement with London. Objective: to present an amicable divorce agreement at the European summit on Thursday and Friday, with a view to the Brexit scheduled for 31 October. An agreement remains "possible", one suffers in the ranks of the EU.
EU negotiator Michel Barnier has ruled Tuesday, October 15 possible to reach an agreement this week. "Detailed discussions are underway and an agreement is still very much possible," confirmed his British interlocutor, Brexit Minister Steve Barclay.
"But if we want an agreement for the summit, it is necessary that a legal text be finalized tonight [Tuesday] or at the latest tomorrow morning" to be presented to the Member States and the Parliament, explained Michel Barnier.
"Turning good intentions into legal text"
"It is high time to turn good intentions into a legal text," he insisted. "I am skeptical about the possibility of having an agreement on a legal text by tomorrow," said a member of the German government on Tuesday after being informed of the state of discussions with the British. "Significant progress is still needed," warned Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney.
"Concessions made by London"
"The negotiations stumble around a central point with customs controls", decrypts Pierre Benazet, France 24 correspondent in Brussels, which notes a progress on the side of British and European negotiators. "Concessions were made by London: Boris Johnson, who wanted customs controls to be held in Ireland, agreed to move them to the Irish Sea, between Great Britain and Northern Ireland," he said. -he. Which would divide the UK de facto in two. "
Observers see it as a major concession from the British, which suggests that the British Prime Minister wants to reach an agreement by the end of the month.
If no final text is finalized before the Brussels Summit, a new deadline could be presented.
With AFP