British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen have decided to continue negotiations on Brexit terms after the deadline they set on Sunday
This was reported by the BBC’s Russian Service.
Thus, the negotiations held on Saturday lasted until late at night, but the sides were unable to significantly bring their positions closer – the conditions put forward by Brussels are considered unacceptable in London
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Any agreement between Britain and the EU had to be “fair and reflect Britain’s official position, which is that in three weeks’ time the country will be fully sovereign”, the agency’s source said.
According to Irish Prime Minister Michal Martin, a no deal scenario “would be very bad news for all of us” and a “horrendous failure of governance” on both sides.
The sides reportedly released a joint statement from Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen, saying talks would continue.
“We had a useful telephone conversation this morning. We discussed the main outstanding topics. Our negotiating teams have been working day and night in recent days,” the statement said.
It also said in the statement that despite the fact that the nearly year-long talks had taken a lot of energy from the parties, it was decided to continue them after the deadline on Sunday.
“We have instructed our teams to continue negotiations and see if an agreement can be reached even at this late stage,” the statement said.
Ursula von der Leyen added that talks would continue in Brussels.
“As of this moment, I am afraid our differences on some key issues are still very high. But hope dies last, and we will continue negotiations to see what we can do after all. The United Kingdom will certainly not walk away from the negotiations,” Boris Johnson told the BBC on Sunday.