British Prime Minister Theresa May met European Commission Chief Jean-Claude Juncker in Brussels on Friday for crunch talks to seal a deal on Brexit divorce terms.
Negotiators worked through the night to reach a deal before a Sunday deadline for Britain to finalise its divorce terms from the EU, ahead of a December 14-15 leaders’ summit that will unlock negotiations on a future trade deal.
Juncker’s Chief of Staff Martin Selmayr tweeted a picture of white smoke — the sign used by the Vatican to signify the election of a new pope — shortly after her arrival.
Irish border dispute
May’s return comes just four days after her last talks with Juncker ended broke up without agreement when her government’s Northern Irish allies objected to plans for the future of the border with EU member Ireland.
The British leader arrived at the commission’s Berlaymont headquarters shortly before 06:00 GMT and was welcomed by Juncker. The pair ignored questions as they posed for a photos before Juncker steered May off with a hand round her shoulder.
In the corridor before the official handshake, Britain’s Chief Brexit negotiator David Davis greeted Juncker with a hug.
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