Sputnik News – UK and EU Brexit negotiators have agreed to carry on talks to reach an array of standalone agreements if a deal is not reached before the 15 October summit, media reported.
According to The Times newspaper, Lord Frost, the UK’s chief negotiator, and Michel Barnier are set to carry on talks into November in an effort to put together so-called mini-deals in areas such as aviation and road transport to offset the likely disruption when the transition period ends on 31 December.
The European Council Summit on 15 October is set to bring together leadership from both sides in Brussels, initially intended to be the end in a signing of an all-encompassing trade, transport and migration deal. UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has pledged to walk away from the talks if a trade deal is not reached by the time of the summit.
As talks between the two sides have proved contentious with a trade agreement between the soon-to-be-separate markets looking exceedingly unlikely, the summit is all but set to be a tense affair.
The United Kingdom left the European Union in January but remains under the current EU trade terms. However, if no trade deal is secured before the so-called transition period expires on 31 December, the World Trade Organisation’s rules for both parties will come into effect starting 2021, including customs tariffs and full border checks for UK goods entering the EU.
