'Extremely late': Time is running out for Brexit deal, says European Union
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen
European Union diplomats warned Britain on Monday that time was fast running out for aBrexitdeal, and that it may already be too late to ratify one, as negotiators in Brussels began a last-ditch attempt to avoid a tumultuous exit at the end of December.
The EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier and his UK counterpart David Frost are in Brussels in hopes of securing an agreement after eight months of talks.
The clock is ticking towards December 31 when a post-Brexit transition phase ends and the UK and Europe will need a trade deal to govern ties or face economic chaos.
Britain, which left the EU in January, called on the EU to show "more realism" if there was to be more progress in the coming days.
Ireland, the EU nation most exposed toBrexit, said there were just days, or possibly weeks, left to find a way to unlock trade talks, while a senior EU official said there may no longer be time to put any trade deal agreed into force.
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A deal is needed early enough before that date to allow the ratification by European Parliament, which meets for the last time on December 16.
Britain said there had been some progress and that the two sides had common draft treaty texts, though significant elements were yet to be agreed.
Officials on both sides of the talks say negotiators are waiting for the opposite side to make a big move on the tough issues that have stymied the talks since the start.
For the UK, the EU must rescind its hopes of keeping permanent wide access to British waters for European fishermen.
The EU meanwhile is still waiting for London to lay down guarantees for fair competition on matters such as the environment, health, and state aid.
"We are very strict on our conditions. They are acceptable," said Thierry Breton, France's representative to the European Commission that is spearheading the talks for the EU.
If Prime Minister Boris Johnson "respects them, there will be a deal. If he does not respect them, there will be no deal," Breton told French broadcaster LCI.
The talks entered this most crucial phase as a cabinet crisis embroiled the Johnson government, which is also fighting the second wave of the coronavirus pandemic.
An EU leaders video call on Thursday to discuss the pandemic was considered as a de facto deadline, though the likelihood of a full-fledged deal by then seemed increasingly unlikely.
A "no-deal" finale to theBrexitcrisis would shock financial markets and disrupt delicate supply chains that stretch across Europe and beyond - just as the economic hit from the coronavirus pandemic worsens.