The United States called on the United Kingdom and the EU on Friday to reach a compromise on Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit trade agreements after Boris Johnson threatened to break the agreement.
The British prime minister said during a trade mission to India that his government was ready to take unilateral steps to reform the Brexit deal, which has strained relations between the UK and the EU since its entry into force.
Asked if he was ready to pass a law empowering British ministers to castrate elements of the so-called Northern Ireland Protocol into UK law – as the Financial Times first reported – Johnson said: “Of course. That goes without saying. “
Johnson’s position came despite warnings from the European Commission and the opposition Labor Party that unilateral action would put the UK in breach of international law.
Washington has called on the United Kingdom and the EU to continue talks to address the challenges of implementing the protocol. The US State Department has said that America’s priority is to protect the “gains” from the Good Friday peace agreement.
The best way forward is pragmatic, which requires courage, cooperation and leadership
“We acknowledge that there have been challenges to the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol and that negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU to resolve them are ongoing,” said a State Department spokesman.
“The best way forward is pragmatic, which requires courage, cooperation and leadership.”
The spokesman added that Washington called on all parties to “continue to engage in dialogue to resolve differences and bring the negotiations to a successful conclusion.”
Richard Neal, a Democrat from Massachusetts and chairman of the House and Representatives Committee on Roads and Funds, told the FT: “Maintaining peace and stability on the island of Ireland is essential. The repeal of the Northern Ireland Protocol could compromise post-Brexit trade facilitation between the United Kingdom and the European Union. The progress made thanks to the Good Friday Agreement must be maintained. ”
Asked about the protocol this week, a committee spokesman said it was “important to stress” that the Brexit deal that Johnson negotiated in 2019 created “legal obligations to which the UK is as bound as we are”. .
EU diplomats also warned that it would be “completely irresponsible” for the UK to be seen as ignoring international law at a time when Europe was trying to present a united front against Russia following its invasion of Ukraine.
Boris Johnson comments on Northern Ireland during trade trip to India © Stefan Rousseau / Pool / Reuters
Peter Kyle, secretary of Northern Ireland in the shadows, said the government’s plan risked undermining the UK’s reputation for sticking to its word as Johnson traveled the world looking for Brexit trade deals with countries like India.
While Johnson said the United Kingdom still wants to resolve outstanding issues under the protocol on a bilateral basis with the EU, officials on both sides said talks on resolving implementation differences are stalled.
The agreement leaves Northern Ireland to follow EU rules on trade in goods and creates a customs border in the Irish Sea, which the British government and all pro-British union parties in the region say is “unsustainable”. Some businesses have also complained that the protocol has introduced unnecessary bureaucracy.
As a sign of how far Brussels and London are, EU chief Brexit negotiator Maros Shefcovic wrote to British counterpart Liz Truss last month, complaining that the UK still does not provide adequate access to customs data, in a letter seen by FT.
The news that the UK government is preparing legislation that would give ministers the power to “exclude” parts of the protocol came ahead of the Northern Ireland Assembly elections on 5 May.
The plan provoked an angry reaction from the nationalist Sinn Fein party, which could be the largest group in the assembly for the first time.
“These senseless actions by the British government are completely out of touch with most of the people in the north who support the protocol and realize that it is here to stay,” said a spokesman for Sinn Fein.
Unionist leaders gather against Tyrone County protocol on Thursday © Liam McBurney / PA
Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, leader of the Democratic Unionist Party, which is currently the largest group in the Stormont Assembly, said the DUP had made it clear that it wanted the protocol issues resolved before agreeing to return to sharing power in the executive branch of the region.
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“The protocol is not supported by the trade unions and must be replaced by agreements that respect Northern Ireland’s place in the United Kingdom,” he added.
Doug Beatty, leader of the Ulster Unionist Party, said changes were needed “and if [UK] the government will do something, they just have to do it. “
But Stephen Farry, deputy leader of the centrist Alliance party, called unilateral action “counterproductive and harmful”.
“Business needs pragmatic and sustainable solutions – and they need to be legal,” he said.
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