BRUSSELS – Despite all the complications and hurt feelings that Brexit introduced into the relationship between the European Union and its former member, Great Britain, this week saw the addition of a diplomatic fight that recalls a similar discussion initiated by former President Donald J. Trump.
So far, at least, Britain has refused to grant the European Union ambassador the same diplomatic status as the other ambassadors.
The British argument is that the European Union is an international federation, not a nation-state, and should receive the same treatment as other international organizations, further down the diplomatic classification. There is also a suspicion that the British government is trying to embarrass Brussels and contrast its own nation-state condition with the confederation it has decided to leave.
The dispute was first reported by the BBC, and the issue is still being negotiated, representatives of both sides said on Thursday.
“Engagement with the EU continues in the long-term agreements for the EU delegation to the United Kingdom,” the British Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
Peter Stano, a spokesman for the European External Action Service, said the European Union “enjoys privileges and immunities equivalent to those of diplomatic missions under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations” and has such status in 143 other countries and organizations multilateral organizations in the world, “And the UK is well aware of that fact”.
Both sides noted that levels of representation were not considered in the Brexit negotiations.
Britain’s exit from the bloc is still crude, with considerable initial problems and customs issues delaying bilateral trade, and its position seems to emphasize what the Brexiters call their “liberation” from the European Union and shared sovereignty obligations. .
One of the results of the demotion, if confirmed, would be the elimination of diplomatic immunity for representatives of the European Union. And the EU ambassador would not be allowed to present credentials to the queen.
Ian Bond, director of foreign policy at the Center for European Reform in London, said that “Britain’s attempt to downgrade the status of the EU delegation to the UK seems petty and will certainly cause ill will, when the UK needs friends. in Brussels. ”
“It is worth noting that Trump tried the same trick, but he had to back down,” he said, referring to a similar effort to downgrade the status of the EU ambassador in Washington two years ago.
“Is it a good precedent?” said Mr Bond.
The downgrade of ambassador David O’Sullivan was evident at President George HW Bush’s December 2018 funeral, when O’Sullivan’s name was not called in the expected order. The names of diplomats who met in Washington to pay homage to the former president were read aloud, as is customary, from the oldest ambassador to the youngest, but O’Sullivan was called last.
Trump was known for his dislike for the European Union, which he compared to an enemy and rival, not an ally. But after the news broke, former US ambassador to the European Union, Gordon Sondland, was instrumental in getting the Trump administration to restore the EU’s diplomatic status and position three months later.
Of course, while still a member of the European Union, Britain was outspoken in defending the bloc’s diplomatic status for the Trump administration.
The EU ambassador in London, João Vale de Almeida, is one of the most experienced members of the bloc. Previously, he served as the European Union’s ambassador to the United Nations from 2015 to 2019 and as an ambassador to the United States from 2010 to 2014.