Britain and the United States failed to strike an agreement on a post-Brexit trade deal Tuesday following two days of talks, but vowed to keep working for a deal that is keenly sought by London.
Britain’s International Trade Minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan met US Trade Representative Katherine Tai in Aberdeen, following the launch of a “transatlantic dialogue” in March aimed at boosting trade.
While Tai refused to rule out a free trade agreement, which British Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants, it does not appear to be a priority of the Biden administration.
“We have a dialogue planned for later in the spring, which will be around subjects of Small and Medium Enterprises,” Trevelyan told reporters in London.
Read more: Pompeo fails to block Huawei’s 5G approval in UK, ‘massive hurdle’ for US-UK trade talks
In a joint statement, London and Washington detailed the themes of the upcoming talks: support for supply chains and collaboration on food security and the environment, alongside SMEs.
“The purpose of these dialogues is, in the face of additional change, and dynamism and fluidity in the global economy, to explore how we can bring together our strengths and our synergies to respond effectively, meaningfully and, ultimately, to deliver for our people, our businesses and our economies,” Tai said.
On a parliamentary US delegation, we were told that a US-UK trade deal would be worker-centric. The SoS supposedly said that ‘levelling up’ was the UK version of worker centric. I asked if this was true and if there will be worker representation at all trade meetings? pic.twitter.com/3tveJJhm70
— Chi Onwurah 💙 (@ChiOnwurah) April 21, 2022
The UK left the European Union in January 2021 and has been seeking deals across the world to boost international trade.
An agreement with Washington is seen as a priority but President Joe Biden’s administration has been more lukewarm than his predecessor.
Biden, an Irish-American, and senior Democrats have warned Johnson a deal will be off the table if London’s lingering row with Brussels over post-Brexit trade in Northern Ireland affects the hard-won peace.
Read more: Interpreting the US-backed regime change operation in Pakistan
The UK and pro-UK parties in the British-run province claim the special arrangement governing the transport of goods from mainland Great Britain has cast Northern Ireland adrift, threatening its sovereignty.
AFP with additional input by GVS News Desk