LUXEMBOURG: France is making urgent preparations for Britain crashing out of the EU without a deal, including imposing checks at the Channel Tunnel, a senior minister warned Tuesday.
Nathalie Loiseau, France’s Europe minister, insisted Paris was “determined to have a good deal” with Britain on its departure from the EU but said “no deal” preparations were under way.
Brexit talks are on a knife-edge, with British Prime Minister Theresa May set to make a pitch to EU leaders in Brussels on Wednesday at a summit billed as the last chance to agree a draft deal in time for Brexit day on March 29.
European ministers have been keen to stress their desire to reach an accord with London but EU President Donald Tusk said in a letter inviting leaders to the summit that the “no deal” scenario was “more likely than ever before.”
Loiseau said “everything is on the table” and France had set up the mechanisms to pass emergency legislation to deal with the chaos expected in the event of “no deal.”
“We are prepared for all scenarios including the absence of an agreement,” she said as she arrived for a meeting of EU ministers in Luxembourg.
“A few days ago I presented in cabinet a plan prepared with the foreign minister to allow us to legislate by decree, in order to take all necessary measures in case of no deal.”
The measures relate to French people in Britain and British citizens in France, she said — as well as the Channel Tunnel, which carries substantial numbers of passengers and quantities of freight each day.
“Clearly these (measures) will include everything to do with the Channel Tunnel — checks which could be necessary if there is no deal,” she said.
May on Monday admitted there was still “disagreement” over how to keep open Britain’s land border between Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland, although she said a deal was still “achievable.”
Talks on Sunday between British Brexit minister Dominic Raab and the EU negotiator Michel Barnier ended without breakthrough on the Irish border issue.
London and Brussels say they want no checks imposed on the land border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, but the problem persists of how to square that aim with Britain’s decision to leave the EU’s single market and the customs union.
France preparing Channel Tunnel checks in case of ‘no deal’ Brexit
France preparing Channel Tunnel checks in case of ‘no deal’ Brexit
- Nathalie Loiseau, France’s Europe minister, insisted Paris was “determined to have a good deal” with Britain on its departure from the EU
- Brexit talks are on a knife-edge, with British Prime Minister Theresa May set to make a pitch to EU leaders in Brussels on Wednesday
EU sends emergency generators to Ukraine as France plans to coordinate aid
- The European Commission will send 447 emergency generators worth $4.3m to restore power
- “Russia’s continued attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure ... are designed to break Ukrainian spirit,” Lahbib said
PARIS: The European Union is deploying emergency generators to Ukraine, saying Russian bombings have left a million people without power and heating, while France plans to hold a call to rally international help for Ukrainians exposed to extreme cold.
Electrical engineers have been working around the clock in hazardous conditions for weeks since Russia escalated attacks on Ukraine’s grid during a cold snap that has reached temperatures of minus 20 degrees Celsius (minus 4 F).
The European Commission will send 447 emergency generators worth 3.7 million euros ($4.3 million) to restore power to hospitals, shelters and critical services affected by “relentless Russian strikes,” it said in a statement on Friday.
It added the generators will be mobilized from strategic reserves hosted in Poland and distributed in cooperation with the Ukrainian Red Cross to the most affected communities.
“Russia’s continued attacks on Ukraine’s energy infrastructure ... are designed to break Ukrainian spirit,” European crisis chief Hadja Lahbib said in the statement.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky has declared an energy emergency after the strikes over winter knocked out power generation and distribution facilities.
“We won’t let Russia freeze Ukraine. We bring light and warmth where Russia sends darkness,” Commission spokesperson Eva Hrncirova told a daily news briefing.
FRANCE TO HOLD CALL WITH INTERNATIONAL PARTNERS
Earlier on Friday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot told BFM television that France would
hold a call
with G7 countries as well as Nordic and Baltic states later in the day to coordinate support for Ukraine’s energy grid.
“He continues to shell Ukrainian cities and energy infrastructure. We will continue to support Ukraine,” Barrot said, referring to Russian President Vladimir Putin.
He said France would supply Ukraine with the equivalent of 13 extra megawatts of electricity and around 100 generators to replace destroyed infrastructure. Other countries would also pledge assistance during the virtual meeting, he said.
