The European Commission said it had initiated infringement proceedings because the United Kingdom had failed to implement the agreement “despite repeated calls” to do so. The UK government has argued that the agreement should be “corrected” to avoid “cumbersome customs procedures, rigid regulations, tax and expenditure disputes and issues of democratic governance”. The EU said the renegotiation of the protocol was “unrealistic” and that its unilateral change would be seen as a violation of an international agreement, which could lead to fines. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Maroš Šefčovič, Vice-President of the European Commission, said: “Let there be no doubt: there is no legal or political justification for unilaterally changing an international agreement. Opening the door for a unilateral change of an international agreement is a violation. of international law as well. “Well, let’s say things by name: this is illegal,” he added. The agreement was implemented to safeguard the Good Friday Agreement, which helped end years of deadly religious violence and stipulates that there should be no hard borders between the Republic of Ireland, which is part of the EU, and the North Ireland, which has left the EU along with the rest of the United Kingdom. To avoid hard borders, the UK agreed to keep Northern Ireland within the EU regulatory system. This solution, however, created another headache: because the rest of the UK does not fall under EU rules, goods leaving from Northern Ireland to the rest of the United Kingdom should be checked. Despite agreeing to this solution, the British government now says that this solution is unfair. “[The change of the agreement] “It will end the unacceptable situation in which people in Northern Ireland are treated differently from the rest of the United Kingdom, it will protect the supremacy of our courts and our territorial integrity,” week. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Šefčovič said that in addition to launching legal proceedings, the EU was also presenting some “additional details” about possible solutions it had proposed earlier. However, he also acknowledged that the conflict could escalate further if the United Kingdom went ahead with the changes, even sparking a trade war. “But we are not there yet and we want to resolve this issue as the two partners should, through negotiations, seeking common ground and bringing results for the people of Northern Ireland,” he said. The EU said in a statement that it would refer the United Kingdom to the European Court of Justice if the British government did not respond within two months.
