Juncker Says EU Stands Ready To Help Ireland In Case Of No-Deal Brexit

The European Union is ready to help Ireland in case of a no-deal Brexit, but the United Kingdom leaving without an agreement is not a "working assumption," President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker said Wednesday

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 06th February, 2019) The European Union is ready to help Ireland in case of a no-deal Brexit, but the United Kingdom leaving without an agreement is not a "working assumption," President of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker said Wednesday.

Juncker is set to meet UK Prime Minister Theresa May on Thursday. According to the prime minister's representative, she wants to discuss alternative arrangements for an Irish border backstop, which prevented the withdrawal deal from passing the UK House of Commons.

"We stand ready to help, but I don't like the expression 'help' ... My working assumption is not a no deal," Juncker said at a joint press conference with Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar, when asked what help Ireland could expect from the European Union in case of a no deal.

Varadkar was asked to comment on German Chancellor Angela Merkel's suggestion for a "creative" approach to Brexit negotiations.

"We've already been very creative in the withdrawal agreement. You know, let's not forget where we started. We started with a backstop that would apply only to Northern Ireland.

It was the request of the United Kingdom that we extend that to include a customs union, our single customs territory involving the United Kingdom ... We've been very creative all along. And perhaps it's for those who have created this problem to be a bit creative now," Varadkar said.

In January, the UK parliament rejected the withdrawal agreement and voted to search for alternative options instead of a backstop. The European Union has stressed that it would not reopen negotiations.

The backstop would apply only if the United Kingdom and the European Union failed to agree on all aspects of their future relationship by the end of the Brexit transition period. To avoid a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, the United Kingdom would remain part of a single customs territory with the European Union, while Northern Ireland would remain aligned with some of the EU single market rules. This might lead to checks on goods between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom.

The United Kingdom is set to leave the bloc on March 29.