Irish PM: Deal over N. Ireland inches closer

LONDON — Ireland's prime minister said on Saturday that the UK and European Union are "inching" closer to a deal to resolve a thorny post-Brexit dispute in Northern Ireland.

Leo Varadkar told reporters that an agreement may be reached within days. His comments come amid speculation that a breakthrough in trading arrangements, known as the Northern Ireland Protocol, is imminent after months of wrangling.

"Certainly, the deal isn't done yet. But I do think we are inching toward a conclusion," Varadkar told the broadcaster RTE. "I would just encourage everyone to go the extra mile to come to an agreement, because the benefits are huge."

The United Kingdom and the EU have been at loggerheads over Northern Ireland — which shares a land border with the Republic of Ireland, an EU member — since the country quit the trade bloc in 2020.

Key pillar

When the UK left, the two sides agreed to keep the Irish border free of customs posts and other checks because an open border is a key pillar of Northern Ireland's peace process.

Under the agreement, there are checks on some goods entering Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK. This angered British unionist politicians, who said the trade border undermined Northern Ireland's place in the UK.

Northern Ireland's power-sharing government has been nonfunctional since the Democratic Unionist Party walked out in protest a year ago. The party has insisted that the protocol must be scrapped or substantially changed, and any deal that the UK strikes with the EU must secure its backing.

In an interview with The Sunday Times newspaper, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak indicated that "anything that we do will tick all of those boxes", referring to unionist concerns about the trade deal. "I'm here all weekend trying to get it done," he said.

The newspaper said the announcement of an agreement was expected as early as Monday, which is when lawmakers in Sunak's Conservative Party have been told to be in Parliament.

Sunak's office raised hopes of an agreement after it said "good progress" had been made in a Friday call between Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.

British media reported that von der Leyen was due to travel to the UK on Saturday to meet Sunak and King Charles. However, UK government sources confirmed to the PA news agency that von der Leyen's trip had been called off.

Agencies - Xinhua