Sunak and Von der Leyen have "positive" talks on the Northern Irish protocol but there is "work to be done"

MADRID, 18 Feb. (EUROPA PRESS) -

The British Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, and the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, have held "positive talks" this Saturday about the development of the talks for the Northern Ireland protocol, although they have recognized that it is necessary further work on discussions, particularly at ministerial level.

In a joint statement, both leaders agree that "very good progress has been made in the search for solutions but intensive work is still needed in the coming days at the official and ministerial level."

In comments on the sidelines made during the Munich Security Conference, Sunak has admitted that there is still "no agreement" with the EU to solve the problems with the Protocol, although he has stated that there is "an understanding of what should be done". .

"There are real problems that must be solved. The way in which the protocol was implemented is posing real challenges for the families, for the people and for the companies affected," he explained, in statements collected by DPA.

"We are engaged in those talks with the European Union all the time and have been for a while, but what I would say is that there is still work to be done. We have not resolved all these issues and an agreement has not been reached, but there is an understanding of what must be done.

Within the framework of the divorce agreements, the European Union and the British Government agreed that after the breakup a series of controls should be carried out and other conditions imposed on the passage of goods from the rest of Great Britain to the Northern Irish province, with the aim that Northern Ireland could remain part of the Single Market without reintroducing a guarded border in Ulster.

The Government of Boris Johnson decided unilaterally to break with the application of the protocol for Northern Ireland, alleging that it seriously harmed its interests, a step that the EU denounced before the Court of Justice of the EU, considering that it is a breach of a Treaty international.

With the replacement at the head of Downing Street, contacts have improved in the tone between the parties and in the progress, even announcing the first points of agreement on elements such as extending the flexibility in the controls of veterinary medicines.