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EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen
Photo: Virginia Mayo / dpa
Ursula von der Leyen sees progress in the stalling Brexit negotiations.
"The next few days will be decisive," said the EU Commission President on Wednesday in Brussels.
One of the three main points of contention has been largely resolved.
It is about how disputes should be settled in the future if the planned free trade agreement between Great Britain and the European Union comes about.
At the moment it is impossible to say whether there will be an agreement between the two sides in the end or a hard break, which the economy fears above all.
But there is a way to be successful, said von der Leyen.
“This path may be very narrow, but it is there.” There are still two central issues - future fishing quotas and assurances of fair competition.
Great Britain officially left the EU at the end of January, to which it had been a member since 1973.
The transition phase ends on December 31, during which the kingdom still has to apply EU rules.
After that, chaos threatens without a trade deal.
Experts then expect higher tariffs on many products and long waiting times at the border.
Similar to von der Leyen, Chancellor Angela Merkel said in the Bundestag: "There has been progress, but no breakthrough." There will be further rounds of negotiations by the end of the week.
The British were more skeptical: Prime Minister Boris Johnson's spokesman said there was "some progress," but also significant differences.
The most likely scenario is therefore still that there will be no agreement in the end.
Johnson himself said in the UK Parliament that he hoped the EU would still see reason.
It is quite natural that his country should want sovereignty over its laws and also its own waters.
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as / Reuters