British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said today on the eve of his visit to Northern Ireland that if the European Union (EU) does not agree to revise the trade rules that came into force after the exit of Great Britain, it will be "necessary to act".
In an op-ed for the Belfast Telegraph, Johnson wrote that the EU does not want to admit that the agreement is not working, and that the British government wants changes, not withdrawal from the agreement with the EU.
"I hope the EU's position will change. If not, it will be necessary to act," Johnson wrote.
He assessed that the trade rules destabilize the delicate political balance of Northern Ireland and added that the British government will "present to Parliament a more detailed assessment and next steps" in the coming days.
Earlier this month, the nationalist Sinn Féin party won the most seats in Northern Ireland's elections. It is the first victory of the party that advocates the unification of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
The second-largest Democratic Unionist Party refuses to enter government and allow parliament to meet until Johnson's government reverses customs and other checks and regulations that came into force after Britain left the EU.
According to the rules of the peace process in Northern Ireland, a government cannot be formed without the agreement of both the nationalist and unionist parties.
Northern Ireland is the only part of Great Britain that borders the EU.
After "Brexit", the borders of Northern Ireland remained open and without special customs control, because it is an important part of the peace process that ended the previous conflicts in the country. Only certain goods, such as meat and eggs, entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain are controlled. That arrangement is opposed by Northern Ireland's unionists, who claim that it burdens the economy and disrupts ties with other states of Great Britain.
"I think there is a serious risk that we are heading in the direction of a trade war," former British ambassador to the EU Ivan Rogers said earlier. Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said the EU-UK dispute was "the last thing Europe needs right now" over Ukraine's support for the war with Russia.
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