The EU's chief negotiator for the future relationship with the United Kingdom, Michel Barnier, and the British negotiator, David Frost, agreed on Wednesday 15 April to relaunch the next negotiating rounds on the future partnership on 20 April. Two more sessions will take place on 11 May and 1 June and each cycle will go through the week.
The two men met by videoconference (the format for future rounds) and agreed that "real, tangible progress in the negotiations should be made by June", the Commission said in a statement.
The two men also took note of the technical exchanges held since the beginning of March on the respective draft agreements and exchanged views on the first meeting on 30 March of the Joint Committee which launched specialised committees on aspects of the UK Withdrawal Agreement, which entered into force on 1 February.
During the first round of discussions on the future relationship (see EUROPE 12440/17), the two parties highlighted the points on which agreement would be especially delicate, such as the fisheries sector.
According to the Financial Times, fishing rights and mutual access to waters were not included in the latest UK documents sent to the Commission so as to put more pressure on this dossier, which is due to be closed on 1 July. (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)