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French President Emmanuel Macron has warned Boris Johnson that efforts to restore relations between Paris and London will fail unless the British Prime Minister keeps his word on the Brexit deal in Northern Ireland.
At a breakfast meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit in Cornwall, Macron made it clear he hoped Johnson would abide by the Brexit deal signed with the EU last December.
The EU has threatened to punish Britain, including the imposition of trade sanctions, if Johnson unilaterally breaches commitments on border controls under the Northern Ireland Protocol, which is part of its Brexit agreement.
Macron is seen by Downing Street as the toughest EU national leader in the matter. Arguments between French presidents and British prime ministers at world summits are common and often play well at the national level.
But Macron’s warning underscored the seriousness with which the EU views the growing crisis in Northern Ireland.
Joe Biden, President of the United States, has expressed his deep concern for the future of the peace process.
At an English-language breakfast meeting, an Elysée source said Macron told Johnson he was ready to re-establish relations with London and that Britain and France had many common interests.
“The president, however, strongly stressed that this new commitment requires the British to honor the promises made to Europeans and respect the Brexit agreement,” the Elysee source said.
The protocol requires Britain to check certain goods circulating between Britain and Northern Ireland to prevent them from passing unchecked across the open border in Ireland, a member of the EU, and into the single market.
The introduction of an effective trade frontier within UK territory has infuriated pro-UK unionists in Northern Ireland and increased tension in the region.
Ursula von der Leyen said in a tweet that the Good Friday Agreement and peace on the island of Ireland were paramount.
“We negotiated a protocol to preserve it, signed and ratified by the UK and the EU,” he said. “We want the best possible relations with the United Kingdom. Both parties must implement what we agreed. There is total EU unity in this. “
Johnson argues that the EU is uncompromising in how to implement the protocol and that a clash is approaching later this month over the issue of controls on refrigerated meat products across the Irish Sea.
The EU bans imports of chilled meat, including sausages and minced beef. A “grace period” to allow the continued sale of refrigerated British meat products in New Zealand expires in late June.
Johnson has reserved the right to unilaterally ignore the ban to an extent that the EU has warned it could provoke retaliation under the terms of the Brexit-EU-UK cooperation and trade agreement.
Maros Sefcovic, vice-president of the European Commission, confirmed last week that this could include trade sanctions, generate fears of a trade war or, in the tabloid headlines, a “sausage war”.
Johnson also held talks Saturday morning with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and European Council President Charles Michel and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
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