A deal on Britain's imminent withdrawal from the EU appears "within reach but is not guaranteed," France's deputy foreign minister said Thursday ahead of what is considered a make-or-break summit in Brussels for securing an accord.
"We're hoping for a deal and if it can come in the coming hours, that would be perfect," Jean-Baptiste Lemoyne told Public Senat television.
But he said British Prime Minister Boris Johnson would have to secure parliament's backing, acknowledging in particular that he would "have to negotiate with the unionist party" of Northern Ireland, which "isn't easy."
Lemoyne's statement came shortly before the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) said it could not support a plan Johnson presented to British lawmakers on Wednesday.
Uncertainty over the future border arrangement for Ireland and Northern Ireland has been the main sticking point holding up an accord on the terms of Brexit, with the DUP insisting there be no separate status between the province and the rest of the UK.
"We've seen before that the [British] government's position is not necessarily that of parliament," Lemoyne said.
He said that if no accord emerges from the Brussels summit on Thursday and Friday, a new European Council summit could be required before October 31, when Britain is set to leave the EU, with a deal or without.
"Unfortunately, anything is possible," he said.
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