EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker has said he is convinced Brexit will happen, reiterating that if Britain left the European Union without a deal there would be a new border between Northern Ireland and Ireland.
Three years after Britons voted to leave the EU, hopes of a breakthrough over the terms of its departure have been stoked in recent days by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson saying the shape of a deal is emerging and Juncker saying an agreement is possible.
But diplomats say the two sides are split over London’s desire to remove the Irish border “backstop” from the divorce deal struck by Johnson’s predecessor, Theresa May, and then work out a replacement in coming years.
