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Tuesday 5 december 2017 WORLD NEWS
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EU, UK leaders fail to get Brexit deal, remain optimistic

By RAF CASERT to reach an agreement,”
JILL LAWLESS said EU Commission Presi-
Associated Press dent Jean-Claude Junck-
BRUSSELS (AP) — The Eu- er.
ropean Union and Britain “This is not a failure,” Junck-
ended a flurry of top-level er added after a long ne-
diplomacy on Monday gotiating lunch with British
without a deal on the terms Prime Minister Theresa May.
of their divorce, as agree- May said that “on a couple
ment on how to maintain of issues some differences
an open Irish border after do remain which require
Brexit slipped out of the ne- further negotiation and
gotiators’ grasp. consultation.”
But the two sides said they But she said talks would
were within striking dis- reconvene later this week
tance of consensus, setting “and I am also confident
up a hectic negotiating we will conclude this posi-
rush ahead of next week’s tively.”
EU summit which must de- The EU and the U.K. are
cide whether to broaden nearing agreement on
the talks to the topic of fu- European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker, right, and British Prime Minister Theresa some divorce terms, in-
ture relations. May address a media conference at EU headquarters in Brussels on Monday, Dec. 4, 2017. Brit- cluding the size of the bill
On a day that see-sawed ish Prime Minister Theresa May and EU Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker held a power that Britain must pay as it
between hope and dis- lunch on Monday, seeking a breakthrough in the Brexit negotiations ahead of a key EU summit leaves and the rights of
appointment, the leaders the week after. citizens affected by Brexit.
fell short of reaching what (AP Photo/Virginia Mayo) But the border issue has
the EU considers “sufficient “We had an agreement this on Dec. 14-15 whether to officially leaves on March proved more intractable.
progress” on the divorce is- morning,” said Irish Prime move the negotiations on 29, 2019. After Britain leaves the
sues: Britain’s exit bill, and Minister Leo Varadkar, ex- to the next stage of talks, “Despite our best efforts bloc, the currently invisible
rights of citizens affected pressing disappointment at including trade. and the significant process 310-mile (500-kilometer)
by Brexit, and the status of the last-minute glitch. The lack of progress so far we and our teams have frontier will be the U.K.’s
the currently invisible Irish EU leaders want a deal on has raised concerns that made over the past days only land border with an EU
border, the main sticking divorce terms in time for Britain may not have a deal on the remaining withdraw- country.
point them to agree at a summit on key issues by the time it al issues, it was not possible Britain says it wants to main-
tain a “frictionless” flow of
people and goods with no
Malta makes 10 arrests in journalist’s car bomb killing border posts. But Ireland

By STEPHEN CALLEJA “reasonable suspicion” of have been already threat- will be carried out, despite and the other EU nations
are demanding to know
Associated Press their involvement in Caru- ened by legal action by the prime minister’s public how that will work if Britain
VALLETTA, Malta (AP) — ana Galizia’s killing, Prime the Caruana Galizia fam- insistence earlier in the day is outside the EU’s border-
Ten Maltese suspects were Minister Joseph Muscat told ily.” that all would be done to less single market and its
arrested Monday over reporters at a news confer- Last month, her family had solve the case. tariff-free customs union,
the car bomb slaying of ence. alleged that Farrugia had Muscat “appears to view a looser trading bloc that
a prominent investigative Shortly afterward, he divulged confidential infor- the investigation into Daph- includes non-EU states like
journalist, the prime minister tweeted that two others mation that could hamper ne Caruana Galizia’s as- Turkey.
and other authorities said, had been arrested. the investigation. The minis- sassination as a marketing Negotiators were discuss-
about six weeks after the The two additional suspects ter brushed off the allega- exercise for his government ing an agreement that
assassination that shocked are also Maltese, Home tion, but the family said it and not as a contract kill- would commit Britain
Malta and drew European Minister Michael Farrugia was prepared to take legal ing, which has left surviving to maintaining “regula-
Union pressure to ensure said. Authorities didn’t an- action to prevent the gov- family members wondering tory alignment” between
rule of law here. nounce the names of those ernment from sabotaging what happened and how Northern Ireland and Ire-
Daphne Caruana Galizia, in custody. the investigation. justice can be truly served,” land after Brexit.
whose reporting focused Declining to give details on On Monday, her family re- the family said. Both sides would prom-
heavily on corruption on the arrests, Muscat cited acted angrily to how the They said they had already ise to maintain compat-
the EU island nation, was concerns any information arrests were announced written to the police com- ible trading rules, keeping
killed Oct. 16 when a bomb could compromise pros- — saying police should mission about “the con- the border transparent for
destroyed her car as she pects to successfully pros- have informed the fam- stant stream of leaks which trade.
was driving near her home. ecute the case. Farrugia ily, not Muscat first — and prejudice the integrity of Irish and EU officials indi-
Eight Maltese citizens were said he wouldn’t disclose reiterating in a statement the investigation,” but nev- cated that agreement was
arrested because of a anything else because “I their uncertainty if justice er received a response.q close.q