Sir, – At the Battle of Karansebes in 1788, the Austrian army suffered a heavy military defeat when their encampment was apparently overrun by their Turkish opponents while they slept.
At daybreak, however, it became apparent that no enemy troops had been near the camp that night. In truth, all of the casualties had been caused by Austrian soldiers who, believing themselves under attack by this imaginary enemy, had panicked and begun firing indiscriminately, injuring each other.
Our nearest neighbour is currently involved in a similar conflict with itself, fighting a largely imaginary EU foe and inflicting significant damage to its own economy, credibility and social cohesion.
In years to come, historians may even recall the bizarre events in the British parliament this week as ”the Battle of Westminster”. – Yours, etc,
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MICHAEL McDERMOTT,
Rathgar,
Dublin 6.
Sir, – The discussion around the Brexit backstop is increasingly surreal. The backstop only figures in the Withdrawal Agreement as a fallback position (“backstop”) in case alternative arrangements cannot be agreed. Once these alternative arrangements are found, the backstop will disappear. So the House of Commons has sent Theresa May back to Brussels to seek to replace the backstop with alternative arrangements – which is exactly what the Withdrawal Agreement commits the UK and the EU to do.
In these circumstances, it is hardly surprising that the EU is refusing to reopen negotiations on the Withdrawal Agreement, as it already states the intention of the EU and the UK to replace the backstop with alternative arrangements, once these are agreed.
Perhaps, however, the EU might consider reprinting the Withdrawal Agreement, with the relevant passages in large print. – Yours, etc,
MARK HAYDEN,
Sauvian, France.
Sir, – Concerning Brexit, Chris Johns writes, "There are no examples of any trade talks that have not been long or brutal" (Business, January 27th).
The Australia-United States Free Trade Agreement (AUSFTA) was negotiated cooperatively and signed within a year.
This unmatched feat in trade negotiations was driven by the determination of Australia’s prime minister, John Howard, and American president, George W Bush, to strike a deal.
AUSFTA includes the highly preferential E3 visa which allows Australian citizens and their spouses to live and work in the United States – the same visa that Ireland has recently failed to negotiate.
Political will determines the speed and serenity of international negotiations.
Lack of political determination leads to talks that are “long or brutal”. – Yours, etc,
Dr JOHN DOHERTY,
Vienna.
Sir, – Theresa May is positioning herself in the pages of modern British history as a weak, inept prime minister without conviction, inspiration, leadership ability, skill in negotiation or vision. Unfortunately the Jeremy Corbyn alternative appears even more worrisome. Ominous times for the UK. – Yours, etc,
DES O’HALLORAN,
Tralee,
Co Kerry.
Sir, – If you need more irony in your diet, Brexit is the gift that keeps on giving.
A prime minister who wants to UK to remain in the EU triggers a referendum that results in a vote to exit. His successor has an overall majority so calls an election. That went well! Northern Ireland becomes the only beneficiary of the withdrawal deal and promptly, via the DUP, supplies the most vehement parliamentary opposition to it.
Chief among the grounds for opposition is that Northern Ireland cannot be treated differently to the rest of the UK, except for the loads of ways in which it already is. The biggest single obstacle to agreement by the UK parliament is a major concession won by the UK itself. A second referendum is repeatedly ruled out on the grounds of democracy. The prime minister then urges her colleagues to vote to unpick her deal.
All the while it seems to be forgotten that the hated backstop is a provision that only kicks in if the UK fails to achieve the sort of trade deal it promised would be a piece of cake.
To cap it all, we may now be heading for a crash-out on an issue of no importance whatever to the vast majority of UK citizens, namely Northern Ireland.
There must be an opera in this. We already have the requisite daft plot, so it’s only a question of composing the music. – Yours, etc,
KEVIN O’SULLIVAN,
Dublin 7.
Sir, – The former UK ambassador to Ireland, in his article on Brexit implications, asserts that, “The European Commission’s recent statement that no deal would inevitably mean a hard border was, like many of its Brexit interventions, profoundly unhelpful” (“A hard Border would bring destructive clarity to the North”, Opinion & Analysis, February 1st).
If this attitude represents British thinking on Brexit, then God help us all! – Yours, etc,
TADHG McCARTHY,
Bray,
Co Wicklow.
Sir, – I was recently chatting to a British couple who were Brexiteers. I remarked that after Brexit, the next logical step for Britain would be to leave the UN, in order to be free of UN shackles and to take back more control. They were horrified that I would even consider such an unreasonable move, and reminded me that the UK was a principal founder of the UN and sat on the Security Council. When I suggested that the UK should also leave the Commonwealth to take back control, they replied, “But Queen Elizabeth is in charge of it”. The mask had slipped. The UK doesn’t want to be a member of any club that it is not in charge of. – Yours, etc,
PAVEL MARIANSKI,
Dungarvan,
Co Waterford.