Irish foreign minister Simon Coveney has voiced “cautious confidence” that negotiations between the United Kingdom and the European Union to address the disagreement over post-Brexit arrangements in Northern Ireland will resume within the next few weeks.
According to a senior legislator, private contacts with the newly installed administration of Liz Truss show the potential for a “fresh and possibly more genuine round of engagement.”
Private contacts he and the country’s prime minister, Michael Martin, had with the newly appointed administration of Liz Truss indicated the possibility of a “fresh and possibly more genuine round of communication.”
Mr. Coveney emphasized, however, that it would need compromise on both sides.
Ms. Truss has expressed a desire for a negotiated settlement, but only if it is commensurate with the unilateral action being taken to resolve difficulties surrounding the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Many unionists and loyalists resented and were enraged by the agreement reached between the United Kingdom and the European Union to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland. The agreement created economic barriers to the flow of goods between the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, causing resentment and anger.
The dispute has halted the formation of a devolved government administration in Belfast.
Under former British prime minister Boris Johnson, contentious steps were taken to eliminate some inspections.
The Northern Ireland Protocol Bill would supersede portions of the agreement and introduce separate “green” and “red” lanes for goods traveling between the United Kingdom and Northern Ireland, drawing a line between those bound for the United Kingdom and those bound for the Republic of Ireland and beyond.
Mr. Johnson contended that the Act was required to protect the peace and stability in Northern Ireland.
Critics, though, cautioned that it would constitute an “unacceptable violation” of international law and increase mistrust of Britain.
However, once Ms. Truss won the Tory leadership election and became prime minister, Mr. Coveney adopted a more optimistic tone.
He told the Irish channel RTE, “I am cautiously optimistic that in a few weeks we will witness the beginning of an honest attempt to try to resolve some of these issues that have been unresolved for far too long.
“However, both the Irish government and the European Union are adamant that this requires a concession on the part of the United Kingdom.”
Ireland’s representative on the bloc’s executive, EU financial services commissioner Mairead McGuinness, told RTE that she expected both parties to return to the negotiating table in the coming weeks.
Ms. Truss and the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, are due to address the convention next week at the United Nations General Assembly in New York.
When foreign leaders arrive in Britain for the Queen’s burial, the prime minister will also see her Irish counterpart and US vice president Joe Biden.
It follows news that the United Kingdom informed the European Union that it will continue to suspend border checks between Great Britain and Northern Ireland despite the bloc’s legal proceedings.
In June and July, the European Commission initiated its infringement actions, accusing the United Kingdom of failing to comply with the agreement.
But after the deadline to reply to the proposal passed, ministers are believed to have informed the EU that they will continue with the existing grace periods on checks, meaning that shops and exporters do not have to adhere to all the protocol’s requirements.
