Last month, tensions emerged between the two again European Union and it great Britain in connection with the implementation of the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland EU-UK withdrawal agreement. Protocol governing trade agreements after Brexit for Northern Ireland, this is highly controversial. After last month’s election, the union’s largest political party, the DUPHas rejected to return to the government until their complaints about the deal are resolved. Talks between the EU and the UK, aimed at addressing some of the specific concerns of Northern Ireland’s citizens and businesses, have so far made little progress as the British side refuses to commit. To add a new element of crisis to the debate, the British government has been announced his plans to introduce legislation, as next week, to unilaterally rewrite elements of the Protocol to their own preferences. This unilateral action has been accepted with harsh criticism both by the EU and by international level.

The question is whether the relationship between the EU and the UK, in its current form, has the capacity to reach a common solution on the Protocol, and thereby demonstrate its sustainability. Article “Brexit and trade and cooperation agreements: implications for the EU’s internal and external differentiation” (in English) from Jannike Wachowiak And Fabian Zuleegpublished in International Spectatornoted that, although the parties reached an agreement on the future relationship in December 2020 (EU-UK trade and cooperation agreement), the relationship became much more “distant and conflicted” than initially expected. This will affect the effectiveness, legitimacy and sustainability of EU-UK relations in the future.

The article shows that when a relationship is built on an unstable foundation, it is difficult to build a solution. A distant and precarious relationship built on treaties, based in part on “Brexit” was ideologically driven by the British government, exacerbating unionist grievances against the Protocol. If the UK were willing to accept some obligations for regulatory harmonization, for example on sanitary and phytosanitary products, the need for checks between the UK and Northern Ireland would be much reduced.

«The UK government has announced its plans to introduce legislation, as early as next week, to unilaterally rewrite elements of the Protocol according to its own preferences.»

Additionally, the nature of conflict in relationships makes it increasingly difficult to reach mutual solutions. The latest threats from the UK are in line with negotiating tactics”agree or disagree” explained in the article. This will damage trust between parties. With the UK’s commitment to international law no longer viewed as credible by the EU, providing flexibility in implementing the Protocol becomes increasingly difficult as there is no guarantee that the UK government will respect the safeguards that have been agreed.

The document explains that, for the current governance model of EU-UK relations to be sustainable, it must be considered legitimate by both EU and UK citizens. It is clear that in Northern Ireland, the Protocol, in its current form, is unacceptable to many members of its population. However, that is majority of voters want the Protocol to work, albeit with some modifications. But given the current state of relations between the EU and the UK, a joint solution to this complex problem seems unlikely.

Failure to reach mutual agreement on the implementation of the Protocol will affect the legitimacy and long-term sustainability of the relationship. Commission Europe have left clear that, if the British government continued with unilateral action, it would respond with an increasingly intensive package of retaliatory measures, including trade tariffs and even, ultimately, termination of the agreement. Given the instability of the foundations on which it was founded, there is a real possibility that tensions between the EU and the UK will lead to the breakdown of relations altogether.

Article originally published in English on That net by International Spectator