Britain published its opening demands for trade talks with the European Union today, delivering a blunt threat to walk away from the table if there is no progress within four months. Britain and the EU both say they want to reach a free trade agreement, but have starkly divergent views on how it should be overseen and what constitutes fair competition between their two economies. But the U.K. is demanding the right to diverge from the bloc’s rules in order to strike new trade deals around the world and bolster the British economy. Britain left the EU on January 31 but remains bound by the bloc’s rules until a post-Brexit transition period ends on December 31. Britain hopes by then to have a trade agreement with the bloc similar to the one struck between the EU and Canada.

Source: The Standard February 27, 2020 11:23 UTC