A new Brexit deal

The European Council has approved the Brexit deal agreed with the British prime minister.

Corina Cristea, 18.10.2019, 13:55

Described by the EU chief negotiator
for Brexit Michel Barnier as fair and reasonable and by the British prime
minister Boris Johnson as excellent, the new agreement between London and
Brussels on the UK’s exit from the European Union has also been approved by the
EU leaders gathering in Brussels for their autumn summit.

The document they approved urges the
European Commission, European Parliament and Council of the European Union to
make all the necessary steps for the accord to come into force on the 1st
of November 2019, but the declaration makes no mention of any Brexit delay in
case the British Parliament rejects the deal. According to Michel Barnier, in a
telephone conversation with the president of the European Commission
Jean-Claude Juncker, British prime minister Boris Johnson said he was confident
in his ability to secure the support of the Parliament in London. The president
of the European Council Donald Tusk said he was optimistic and gave assurances
that he would not accept the deal if it were not OK for the European Union and
for Ireland.

The compromise reached with the UK
is for Northern Ireland to remain aligned to certain European single market
regulations despite being in a customs union with the UK. The customs checks
will not be conducted on the island of Ireland, but in ports. No EU customs
duties will be charged for goods going from the UK to Northern Ireland as a final
destination. Such duties will also not be levied on goods taken by passengers
across the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland. Unlike the backstop
solution negotiated by Theresa May and rejected three times by the British
Parliament, the new deal agreed will not be replaced by a subsequent agreement
reached between the European Union and the UK, which is a substantial
concession made by the European Union.

Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis,
who signed the document on behalf of Romania, said the Brexit deal reached on
Thursday doesn’t change anything with regard to the situation of the Romanians
living in the UK, whose rights will be respected. The new deal has not changed
the things that have been negotiated and accepted by both parties, the only
subject that was renegotiated and changed in some respects was the Irish
border, the Romanian president also said, reiterating that the best option is
that of a Brexit with a deal.