European Union ambassadors approved the Brexit agreement (a trade agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom, which will come into effect on January 1 – ed) on December 28. The contract itself was concluded on this Christmas Eve December 24.

And the European Commission announced, on Tuesday, that the agreement will be officially signed by representatives of the European Union. December 30th at 9.30 on behalf of the European Union, the Brexit Agreement will be signed by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel.

EU agreement with Britain, details of the “divorce”

The process of Great Britain’s exit from the European Union began in 2016, when the British decided in a referendum that they wanted to leave the European Union. Subsequently, the terms of this “divorce” were negotiated over the years, and the Brexit deal this year is the final element in these talks. The United Kingdom is officially outside the European Union as of January 31, 2020. Meanwhile, the European Union and the United Kingdom have cooperated in the form of a transition period that ends on December 31 this year.

Therefore, it became necessary to negotiate a new cooperation agreement between Britain and the European Union. In fact, it did so at the last minute, that an agreement was reached on this issue a week before the end of the transition period, parliaments still need approval, etc.

The Brexit agreement, the trade and cooperation agreement – which the European Commission lists on its website – consists of three pillars:

  • Free Trade Agreements (New Economic and Social Partnership with the UK)
  • A new framework for law enforcement and judicial cooperation
  • A “horizontal” agreement includes, inter alia, “binding enforcement and dispute settlement mechanisms”.

The European Commission also notes:

The agreement does not cover foreign policy, external security or defense cooperation because the UK has been reluctant to negotiate on these issues.