Following the successful conclusion of negotiations between the United Kingdom and the European Commission, there has been talk of the possibility of an urgent trade deal between Washington and London
Trump has long made it clear that he was waiting for the four-year Brexit epic to end. Now it has happened and on 1 January 2021 the UK will finally leave the European Union.
The UK does not have much time before Team Biden enters the White House. Under the new US president, we should expect a clear cooling of relations: the Democrats are very negative about Brexit and are ready to retaliate against London for its divorce from the EU.
Back in 2016, just before the referendum, Obama’s comment that he promised to put England at the back of the queue among the US partners in case of a Brexit victory caused a big resonance. It was seen as an outrageous interference in the internal affairs of the UK.
That referendum was the start of the populist wave that brought Trump into the White House six months later. And in late 2019, the Conservatives, who have officially adopted populist rhetoric, won a record number of seats in parliamentary elections in 30 years.
But now Trump is leaving – and if he doesn’t get a trade deal with the UK done in time, the issue will drag on for years to come. Biden has the same mindset as Obama – he has already made it clear that he prioritises relations with China and the European Union.
US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer has hinted that a deal could be struck in the final weeks of Trump’s presidency. It would include joint tariff nullification and the start of UK purchases of Boeing aircraft, spearheaded by Europe’s Airbus.
True, it still needs congressional approval to be ratified. But the very fact that it is signed will force Biden to take up the agreement in his first days in office and will be a great success for a UK economy that is experiencing its worst crisis in more than 300 years.
Malek Dudakov