MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 11th February, 2021) Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin on Thursday called on both the United Kingdom and the European Union to tone down their rhetoric amid an ongoing row over trading regulations on the island of Ireland.
London and Brussels have clashed throughout the first six weeks of the year, after the UK and EU's post-Brexit future partnership agreement came into force on January 1.
The European Commission drew the ire of the UK by invoking Article 16 of the Northern Ireland Protocol, which allows either party to suspend certain provisions of the protocol that was established to govern the border between the UK and the Republic of Ireland, during a row over COVID-19 vaccine supplies.
Speaking on the Irish state radio broadcaster RTE, Martin called on both sides to show restraint.
"It does cause us some headaches, and I think we need to dial down the rhetoric on both sides here," the Irish prime minister said.
The EU quickly reversed its decision to invoke Article 16, although UK Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove subsequently demanded the bloc extend grace periods for UK businesses doing trade with Northern Ireland until 2023. This request has reportedly been denied by Brussels.
David Frost, the UK's lead Brexit policy representative, told a House of Lords committee meeting on Tuesday that relations between the UK and EU in the first six weeks of the post-Brexit era have been "more than bumpy."
London and Brussels have also clashed over the recognition of one another's ambassadors and diplomats.
The UK left the European Union on January 31, 2020. An 11-month transition period followed, giving London and Brussels time to conclude a wide-ranging free trade deal, and a future partnership agreement was reached on December 24.
