LONDON — Senior U.Okay. and European Union officers met Thursday as a part of what Britain referred to as “intensive negotiations” to resolve a thorny post-Brexit commerce dispute that has spawned a political disaster in Northern Eire.

Northern Eire Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris traveled to Brussels to fulfill Maroš Šefčovič, the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator.

Hopes of a breakthrough had been raised final week when Prime Minister Rishi Sunak flew to Belfast to fulfill leaders of Northern Eire’s political leaders and talk about progress. However hints of compromise by the U.Okay. authorities sparked opposition from hard-line euroskeptics in Sunak’s governing Conservative Occasion, costing the prime minister very important political momentum to safe a deal.

The Democratic Unionist Occasion, Northern Eire’s fundamental British unionist power, additionally has warned it’ll oppose any deal that doesn’t meet its demand for “important, substantive change” to the Brexit treaty between the U.Okay. and the EU.

“We’re not simply speaking about tinkering across the edges,” DUP chief Jeffrey Donaldson stated Wednesday.

Northern Eire is the one a part of the U.Okay. that shares a border with an EU member nation, the Republic of Eire. When the U.Okay. left the bloc, the 2 sides agreed to maintain the Irish border freed from customs posts and different checks as a result of an open border is a key pillar of Northern Eire’s peace course of.

The fragility of that peace was underscored by the taking pictures of an off-duty senior Northern Eire police officer on Wednesday as he coached youngsters at soccer. Police stated Irish Republican Military dissidents had been suspected within the assault, which left the officer in vital situation.

Underneath the settlement, there are checks on some items getting into Northern Eire from the remainder of the U.Okay. British unionist politicians argue that the brand new commerce border undermines Northern Eire’s place within the United Kingdom. The DUP walked out of Northern Eire’s power-sharing authorities a yr in the past in protest and is refusing to return till the principles, often called the Northern Eire Protocol, are redrawn.

The protocol has turn out to be an enormous political headache for the U.Okay. authorities and a thorn within the nation’s relations with the EU. The 2 sides have bickered for the reason that divorce grew to become ultimate in 2020, with Britain introducing a invoice that may let it unilaterally rip up elements of the Brexit settlement, and the EU accusing the U.Okay. of failing to honor the legally binding treaty it had signed.

The temper has improved since Sunak took workplace in October, changing the extra belligerent Liz Truss and, earlier than her, Boris Johnson.

However attempting to repair the Brexit deal is an enormous gamble for Sunak. Professional-Brexit Conservatives introduced down Prime Minister Theresa Could in 2019 after repeatedly rejecting her makes an attempt to forge a better relationship with the EU, and so they might hand Sunak the identical destiny if he pushes by way of an settlement with out the Brexiteers’ assist.

The thorniest challenge is the function of the European Court docket of Justice in resolving any disputes that come up over the principles. That function was agreed by Britain and the EU within the Brexit divorce deal, however the DUP and Conservative Brexiteers insist the European courtroom will need to have no jurisdiction in U.Okay. issues.

The U.Okay. hopes to resolve the dispute and restore Northern Eire’s authorities earlier than the twenty fifth anniversary in April of Northern Eire’s 1998 Good Friday peace accord. The British authorities hopes U.S. President Joe Biden will go to to mark the peace milestone.

Sunak instructed lawmakers on Wednesday that “I’ve a very good understanding of what’s required and I’ll preserve combating till we get it.”

But when he fails he might turn out to be one other Conservative prime minister introduced down by Brexit.

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Comply with AP’s protection of Brexit at https://apnews.com/hub/brexit and of British politics at https://apnews.com/hub/british-politics