OREANDA-NEWS. German Chancellor Angela Merkel told British Prime Minister Boris Johnson that a Brexit deal is possible only if Northern Ireland remains in the EU customs union, thus rejecting London’s new Brexit plan. This was announced on Tuesday in her Twitter by political observer of the British Broadcasting Corporation Laura Künssberg with reference to a representative of the Office of the British Prime Minister.

She cites a representative of Downing Street, who said that "the negotiations in Brussels are close to a breakdown, despite the fact that Britain has come a long way". According to the same source, Johnson responded by telling Merkel that such a demand from Berlin makes the deal "essentially impossible".

The British plan allows for the creation of a temporary border on the Irish Sea and customs checks between leaving the EU as part of the United Kingdom Northern Ireland and the remaining EU member Ireland for four years from the end of the transitional period after Brexit. Northern Ireland will continue to remain in a single market, but in 2025 its parliament will decide whether the EU rules will continue to apply to it or whether it's necessary to proceed with the implementation of British standards, which at that time could already be very different from European ones.