by Cat
Tue Aug 22nd, 2017 at 06:31:45 PM EST
The United Kingdom triggered Article 50 on 29 March 2017. What has happened since then on the EU side?
29 April 2017, the European Council at EU27 published European Council (Art. 50) guidelines for Brexit negotiations (HTML)
3 May 2017, the European Commission published recommendation, organizing a negotiating task force and citing establishing law, delivered to the Council.
22 May 2017, the Council published authorisation for the opening of the Article 50 negotiations with the UK and EU agenda of priorities.
19 June 2017, the first round of negotiation with the UK concluded with agreement of the parties to Terms of Reference for the Article 50 TEU Negotiations (pdf)
The United Kingdom, and the European Commission, representing the EU, share the understanding that the following, elements will guide the negotiations under Article 50 of the Treaty of the European Union
(TEU)
[...]
- Indicative dates for first sessions have been agreed as per paragraph 9 below . Each round will include discussion of each of the issues set out in Paragraph 3.
- Indicative dates are:
- Second round: w/c 17 th July
- Third round: w/c 28 th August
- Fourth round: w/c 18 th September
- Fifth round: w/c 9 th October
But you'd never know it to judge from Anglo-american press reporting on the series of non sequitors representing participation by UK gov't. agents in these A50 negotiations with the EU or their agreed, scheduled agenda.
Front paged - Frank Schnittger
The European Commission immediately began compilation and publication of A50 "position papers" transmitted to EU27 constituents by Michel Barnier, the Commission's Chief Negotiator, the Council Working Party chaired by the General Secretariat of the Council, and the Brexit steering group of the European Parliament.
Negotiating documents on Article 50 negotiations with the United Kingdom
There are twenty-five to date, beginning 29 April 2017. The most recent is "Joint technical note on EU-UK positions on citizens' rights after second round of negotiations" (pdf), 20 July 2017. This document is unusual in that EU agents have resorted to a tabular format in order to compare concisely persisting, diverging, and aggravating "terms of reference" adopted in UK gov't special relationship propaganda.
WHEREAS, the gov't. of the UK has published "Providing a cross-border civil judicial cooperation framework" (pdf, 17 July 2017), purporting overweaning concern for "citizens, consumers, families, and businesses" ("and investors"); the EC has published "Judicial Cooperation in Civil and Commerical Matters" (pdf, 13 July 2017) and "Position paper transmitted to the UK: essential principles on citizens' rights"(pdf, 12 June 2017); Bloomberg reporters have promoted a polemic, "U.K. Asks EU to Leave Law Relationships Untouched by Brexit", on the benefits litigators of securities disputes worldwide may enjoy were the EU27 to permit English law to supersede EU law; and eurotrib commentators delve the nuance of the customs border crises embracing Ireland;
one may scarcely wonder, How will the withdrawal agreement (A50) be concluded? What happens if no agreement is reached? When will the negotiations move on to discussions on the future relationship of the European Union and the United Kingdom?
EU position papers tell all. But reading them would ruin the surprise 29 March 2019.