The British government has included the British Bases in three bilateral trade agreements post-Brexit, even though the understanding was that the EU acquis should continue to apply inĀ the SBAs post-Brexit, Phileleftheros reported on Thursday.
It said that the UK has signed agreements with Switzerland, Chile and the Faro Islands which state that they apply also to Gibraltar, the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, and the SBAs of Akrotiri and Dhekelia.
Phileleftheros’ Brussels correspondent Pavlos Xanthoulis said under protocol 3 of Cyprus’ EU accession agreement and the UK’s withdrawal agreement from the EU, the EU acquis will continue to apply in the SBAs post-Brexit. London has also given assurances that the same status would apply in the event of a no deal Brexit, the newspaper adds.
Both Nicosia and Brussels have reportedly sought clarifications from London which attributed the development to an ‘error’ and lack of coordination between the various departments charged with implementing Brexit.
They are now waiting for the ‘error’ to be corrected and for it to be confirmed that the Bases will constitute EU customs union territory, the paper adds.
