Boris Johnson to push for a speedy trade deal in new Brexit talks with EU

Disagreement over Brexit trade talks will likely come to a head in London Wednesday with U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson due to meet with the president of the European Commission. Britain is set to become the first country ever to exit the EU in 24 days — on January 31. This will kickstart a transition period, when London and Brussels will engage in new negotiations that will include future trade arrangements. However, both sides seem to disagree about the timeline for these talks.

Johnson has pushed for legislation to force trade talks with the European Union to end by no later than December. However, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has said that 11 months to put a trade deal together is an “extremely challenging” timeline.

A spokesperson for Downing Street said Tuesday night that Prime Minister Boris Johnson “is expected to tell President Von Der Leyen that, having waited for over three years to get Brexit done, both British and EU citizens rightly expect negotiations on an ambitious free trade agreement (FTA) to conclude on time.”

Some policymakers have warned that trade talks might be more complex than the divorce negotiations witnessed from 2017 to late 2019. Apart from new trading arrangements, negotiators will also have to reach agreements on security and data sharing; aviation standards; supplies of electricity and regulation of medicines.