Germany is optimistic that the EU and U.K. can negotiate a limited free-trade agreement by the end of 2020, as long as both sides stick to a standard template, a senior government official said today.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe have already shown that you can negotiate a lot in a short time if you set yourself clear goals,\u201d the official told reporters during a briefing in Berlin.<\/p>\n
U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has ruled out asking for an extension of the standstill transition period that is due to follow the U.K.s mooted EU exit date of January 31 \u2014 giving negotiators until December 2020 to reach a trade deal.<\/p>\n
This will be \u201cpossible\u201d as long as the U.K. sticks to a model of existing EU trade deals and does not demand specific exemptions, the German official said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs far as the trade agreement is concerned, I believe it is evident that what is known in Brussels as an off-the-shelf agreement \u2014 in other words a standard agreement that has already been negotiated in another context \u2014 can be negotiated relatively quickly with the United Kingdom,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe more the negotiating partners are of the opinion that they must deviate from the standard in this particular case \u2026 the longer it takes,\u201d the official warned.<\/p>\n
He added that such a standard agreement might be limited because \u201cyou cant negotiate all questions in this relatively short timeframe.\u201d<\/p>\n
A senior diplomat from another EU country also said today it was \u201cfeasible\u201d to have \u201cat least a basic\u201d trade agreement with the U.K. by the end of next year, while noting there will not be sufficient time for a big, complex deal.<\/p>\n