European Union wants UK to guarantee peace in Northern Ireland ahead of Brexit

“We will not gamble with peace; or put a sell-by date on reconciliation. And this is why we insist on the backstop. Give us a believable guarantee for peace in Northern Ireland, and the UK will leave the EU as a trusted friend. I hope that the UK government will present ideas that will both respect this point of view and, at the same time, command a stable and clear majority in the House of Commons. I strongly believe that a common solution is possible, and I will do everything in my power to find it”

BRUSSELS, Belgium – As the United Kingdom prepares for Brexit, which is just 50 days away, the European Union(EU) has said it will demand that British Prime Minister, Theresa May guarantees peace in Northern Ireland ahead of Thursday meeting in Brussels.

Theresa May will be seeking to secure a deal or renegotiate Brexit in the meeting following the vote in the House of Commons. But President of the EU, Donald Tusk said today after a meeting with Leo Varadkar, and Irish politician that the EU will demand a believable guarantee for peace in Northern Ireland if she hopes to leave the EU as a trusted friend.

“The top priority for us, remains the issue of the border on the island of Ireland, and the guarantee to maintain the peace process in accordance with the Good Friday Agreement. There is no room for speculation here. The EU itself is first and foremost a peace project.

“We will not gamble with peace; or put a sell-by date on reconciliation. And this is why we insist on the backstop. Give us a believable guarantee for peace in Northern Ireland, and the UK will leave the EU as a trusted friend. I hope that the UK government will present ideas that will both respect this point of view and, at the same time, command a stable and clear majority in the House of Commons. I strongly believe that a common solution is possible, and I will do everything in my power to find it”, he said ahead of the meeting.

He said that a sense of responsibility also tells the EU to prepare for a possible fiasco and that he and Taoiseach have spoken about the necessary actions in case of a no deal”, he said, ” wondering what that special place in hell looks like, for those who promoted Brexit, without even a sketch of a plan how to carry it out safely”.

Tusk explained that the most important task is to prevent a no deal scenario. “I would, once again, like to stress that the position of the EU27 is clear, as expressed in the documents agreed with the UK government – that is the Withdrawal Agreement and the Political Declaration – and the EU27 is not making any new offer.

“Let me recall that the December European Council decided that the Withdrawal Agreement is not open for re-negotiation. I hope that tomorrow we will hear from Prime Minister May a realistic suggestion on how to end the impasse, in which the process of the orderly withdrawal of the UK from the EU has found itself, following the latest votes in the House of Commons”, he said.