NEGOTIATIONS: Negotiations are just beginning between the UK and the EU on the exit terms of Brexit
It is far from over. Emmanuel Macron said on Saturday that he was “not sure” that negotiations between the European Union and the United Kingdom will be successful by the end of 2020, while Brexit is now in effect. “I am not sure that we will have a global agreement by the end of the year,” said the head of state from the Paris Agricultural Show during a meeting with fishermen.
“Anyway, it’s going to be tender because (the British) are very hard, it’s a card they have in their hands,” said the French president. “What we got is that the fishery did not come out of the mandate, but there will be pressure” from the British, he added.
London wants to regain control of fishing waters
The UK officially left the EU on January 31st, entering a transition period which is expected to last until the end of 2020. The two sides have planned to negotiate a free trade agreement within this time.
European chief negotiator Michel Barnier has warned that a fisheries agreement would be “inseparable” from the trade agreement to be negotiated. London, for its part, stressed that “regaining control” of the fish-rich waters of the United Kingdom was of prime importance and that they should be accessible first to “British ships”.
However, fishermen from several EU Member States are highly dependent on fishing in British waters. The latter notably represent 30% of the turnover of French fishermen.
