Ireland Vows to Stand Firm on Border Issue in Brexit Talks

(Bloomberg) -- The Irish government’s opposition to a so-called hard border with the U.K. after Brexit remains “stubborn,” according to Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney.

During a discussion of Britain’s exit from the European Union Saturday, Coveney called on the U.K. government to provide "credible and real answers” about what would happen to the 310-mile frontier.

“Britain does not have the right on its own to shape our future as Ireland in the context of the relationship that we have with the United Kingdom,” he said at a conference in County Cavan, just four miles (six kilometers) from Northern Ireland.

The Irish Republic is seeking a pledge before Brexit negotiations continue that the island won’t be divided along its land border with the U.K. Earlier Saturday Prime Minister Leo Varadkar repeated his view that avoiding a hard border can only be done if the U.K. government continues to apply the rules and regulations of the customs union and single market.

“If there is an alternative proposal from the U.K. side we would like to see it,” he told reporters at the same conference.

To contact the reporter on this story: Rodney Edwards in Ballyconnell, Ireland at redwards102@bloomberg.net.

To contact the editors responsible for this story: Steve Geimann at sgeimann@bloomberg.net, Alex Devine, Natasha Doff

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