By Chathushka Perera
London, UK (CWBN)_ In a conversation with European Commission President, Ursula van der Leyen, that took place last evening, PM Boris Johnson highlighted that Brexit negotiations are in a “serious situation” and that an agreement will not be reached unless the European Union is willing to compromise, a statement issued by Downing Street said.
The statement added that “we were making every effort to accommodate reasonable EU requests on the level playing field, but even though the gap had narrowed some fundamental areas remained difficult.”
With regard to fisheries, which has been one of the most prominent factors in the negotiations, Downing Street claimed that the “UK could not accept a situation where it was the only sovereign country in the world not to be able to control access to its own waters” and disadvantaged with fishing quotas.
A similar statement issued by the EU stated that “We welcomed substantial progress on many issues. However big differences remain to be bridged in particular on fisheries. Bridging them will be very challenging.”
Last Friday (11th Dec), the EU Chief noted that the EU understands UK’s right to control its waters. Likewise, the UK ought to realize the “the legitimate expectations of EU fishing fleets built on decades, and sometimes centuries, of access.”
Negotiations are expected to continue today.
