The United Kingdom and the European Union reached a trade deal just days before the deadline, completing four and a half years of arduous negotiations between the two sides over Britain’s departure from the European Union. Prime Minister John Johansen said excitedly that it was the “biggest trade deal yet” between the U.K. and the EU and that the U.K. had “taken back control of our money, our borders, our laws, our trade and our fishing waters.”
Johansen told a news conference on Thursday (Dec. 24), “I am very pleased to say this afternoon that we have reached the biggest trade deal to date, involving a total of £660 billion a year.” He said it was a comprehensive FTA reached between the UK and the EU.
The original deadline for the two sides to reach an agreement was the end of this year.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said at a news conference after the announcement of the deal: “We have finally reached an agreement. It has been a long and winding road, but we have achieved a good agreement. It’s fair, it’s a balanced agreement, and it’s the right and responsible thing to do for both sides.”
The 2,000-page agreement is unprecedented in its scope, encompassing such diverse areas as energy, fisheries, aviation and civil nuclear cooperation. The agreement will allow both sides to trade in goods duty-free and quota-free after Dec. 31.
The agreement must be approved by the UK and EU parliaments before it can take effect.
Britain’s exit from the EU was the result of a referendum in 2016. Pro-Brexit Britons believe that the UK’s departure from the EU will free it from EU restrictions on the UK’s sovereignty and trade and commerce, among other things. They believe an independent Britain will be better able to cope with a changing world.
The British Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement on Thursday that all the promises made to the British public in the 2016 referendum and last year’s election are being fulfilled in this deal.
The statement added that the signing of the agreement “means we will have complete political and economic freedom from January 2021.” It “also ensures that we will no longer be influenced by the EU, that we will no longer be subject to EU rules, that the European Court of Justice will no longer play any role, and that all key red lines for the return of our sovereignty will be safeguarded.”
The New York Times said the drama of Britain’s exit from the EU is coming to an end and “if the two sides are not able to live together peacefully after that, they will be stuck in a painful stalemate that will hurt bilateral relations for years to come.”
Recent Comments