German foreign minister says Brexit deal with UK still possible

A Brexit deal is still possible between the European Union and the United Kingdom, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said in a telephone call with his Irish counterpart, the German foreign ministry said on Thursday.

The ministry tweeted that Maas also said, “but one thing is clear: EU support for Ireland remains strong and united. Concerning the Northern Ireland protocol no room for comprise. Signed treaties have to be respected.”

The European Union launched a legal case against the United Kingdom on Thursday for undercutting their earlier divorce deal and a senior UK minister said differences remained in talks on a post-Brexit trade agreement.

Controversy over the UK’s new Internal Market Bill has thrown the tortuous Brexit process into a fresh crisis while disagreements over corporate subsidies, fisheries and ways to solve disputes are overshadowing parallel trade negotiations.

“We had invited our British friends to remove the problematic parts of their draft Internal Market Bill by the end of September,” the head of the EU’s executive Commission, Ursula von der Leyen said. “The deadline lapsed yesterday.”

With London not budging, she said the Commission started a so-called infringement, an EU legal procedure against countries that violate the bloc’s laws, while continuing to work towards implementing the divorce deal, or Withdrawal Agreement.

“We stand by our commitments,” von der Leyen said.

London now has a month to reply to the Commission’s formal letter of complaint and even more time to change tack before the Brussels-based executive can sue at the bloc’s top court. The case could lead to hefty fines, but that takes years.