EU chief says trade talks with Britain to resume Sunday

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Saturday after a phone call with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson that trade negotiators will resume talks on Sunday.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Saturday after a phone call with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson that trade negotiators will resume talks on Sunday.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen gives a statement regarding Brexit talks at the European Commission in Brussels, Belgium December 5, 2020. (Reuters photo)

“Differences remain. No agreement feasible if these are not resolved. Chief negotiators will reconvene tomorrow. We will speak again on Monday,” von der Leyen said.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen asked their Brexit negotiators to resume talks but cautioned no deal was possible unless key issues were resolved.

“Significant differences remain on three critical issues: level playing field, governance and fisheries,” Johnson and von der Leyen said in a joint statement. “Both sides underlined that no agreement is feasible if these issues are not resolved.”

“Whilst recognising the seriousness of these differences, we agreed that a further effort should be undertaken by our negotiating teams to assess whether they can be resolved,” they said.