France will only permit the United Kingdom to negotiate an EU-wide migration agreement if Liz Truss backs down in the protracted Brexit spat over Northern Ireland.
Senior French officials told the Daily Mail last night that an agreement with Brussels on dealing with asylum-seekers might be on the table if the dispute over Ulster’s trade regulations is resolved.
The government has been attempting to unilaterally modify a crucial provision of the Brexit agreement with Brussels, the Northern Ireland Protocol, which leaves the province effectively outside the EU single market.
“It relies on the outcome of the Protocol.” Everything is somehow related to Article 16′, a source close to French president Emmanuel Macron stated.
Article 16 permits any side to take unilateral action if it determines that the post-Brexit deal has a significant negative impact on its interests.
Senior French officials told the Daily Mail last night that an agreement with Brussels on dealing with asylum-seekers might be on the table if the dispute over Ulster’s trade regulations is resolved.
A decision to activate it would escalate tensions with Brussels and might eventually lead to a trade war, with the EU suspending elements of the trade agreement that eliminated tariffs and quotas for goods.
In contrast, on September 15, 2018, Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, Theresa Truss, extended the grace periods agreed to between the EU and the United Kingdom in 2020 to allow for less stringent trade controls between the British mainland and Northern Ireland.
The remarks were made during a 44-nation European conference in Prague, initially sponsored by Mr. Macron, when the war in Ukraine, the economic crisis, and illegal migration were discussed.
During the Brexit negotiations two years ago, Eurocrats consistently denied the United Kingdom’s pleas to return unsuccessful asylum-seekers to the EU.
European sources told the Mail that a potential resolution on Northern Ireland increases the likelihood that Downing Street and Brussels will reach an agreement on migration.
A senior EU diplomat working directly on relations with the United Kingdom described the problem as a “deal-breaker” for relations with the United Kingdom. The ambassador stated that the Northern Ireland Protocol has impeded progress in all other areas of cooperation. If we can resolve this, we can proceed with migration.
The government has been attempting to unilaterally modify a crucial provision of the Brexit agreement with Brussels, the Northern Ireland Protocol, which leaves the province effectively outside the EU single market.
In a hint that the relationship between the United Kingdom and France is improving, Ms. Truss referred to Mr. Macron as a “friend” as the two pledged to work together to combat cross-Channel smuggling.
The two presidents stated that they had “decided to deepen cooperation on illegal migration within the confines of international law, to combat criminal gangs that smuggle people throughout Europe, culminating in perilous crossings of the Channel.”
In the next days, Home Secretary Suella Braverman and French Interior Minister Gerald Darmanin will resume discussions on how to prevent migrant boats from departing France for the United Kingdom. The emphasis will be on practical methods to impede departures and dismantle human trafficking networks.
A top assistant to Mr. Darmanin stated, “We will continue to collaborate with the British to prevent cross-Channel movements in accordance with international law.” We support a migration deal with the United Kingdom, but only in a UK/EU context.
This year, more over 30,000 individuals have accomplished the journey in small boats, breaking previous year’s record of 28,526.