Irish official hopeful on Brexit border talks

EU looking for concrete proposals from British.

Ireland’s foreign LONDON — minister said Sunday that he’s hopeful Britain’s proposals for managing Ireland’s border after the U.K. leaves the European Union will generate the momentum to push stalled Brexit negotiations to their next phase.

Foreign Minister Simon Coveney told Ireland’s RTE radio he hopes a crucial U.K.-EU meeting today yields enough progress to “allow this Brexit negotiation process to open up to phase two of discussions,” focusing on future relations and trade.

The EU has given Britain a Monday deadline to produce concrete proposals on the key issues in their divorce talks, including maintaining an open border between Northern Ireland and the Irish republic.

British Prime Minister Theresa May is due to meet European Commission chief JeanClaude Juncker to lay out the proposals that will be considered by EU leaders before a Dec. 14-15 summit in Brussels.

May’s government has said there will be no “hard border” between EU member Ireland and Northern Ireland, which is part of the U.K., once Britain leaves the EU’s single market and customs union in March 2019. Ireland and other EU countries still want to know how customs checkpoints and other typical border activities can be avoided.

The two sides are reportedly close to a deal on other big issues, including the size of the bill that Britain must pay for departing the bloc and the rights of citizens affected by Brexit.

But as the divorce talks hit a crucial stage, divisions within Britain’s governing Conservative Party over the EU are limiting the room May has to maneuver.

Lobbying group Leave Means Leave told May in a letter that she must refuse to compromise on several points, such as ensuring that European Court of Justice jurisdiction over Britain ends on the day the country officially out of the EU in 2019.

Several high-profile Conservative lawmakers signed the letter, including former Cabinet ministers Nigel Lawson and Owen Paterson.

Britain hopes the EU will agree to a two-year transition period after Brexit.