英國退歐協(xié)議即將達成

Britain could conclude a withdrawal agreement with the EU within the next three weeks, Dominic Raab, the Brexit secretary, has told parliament, even as diplomats in Brussels played down the prospects of a rapid breakthrough.

英國退歐事務(wù)大臣多米尼克·拉布(Dominic Raab)向議會表示，英國有望在三周內(nèi)與歐盟(EU)達成退歐協(xié)議，盡管布魯塞爾的外交官們淡化了談判會迅速取得突破的前景。

Sterling rose sharply yesterday after Mr Raab’s comments that a deal with the EU could be finalised by November 21, underlining the risk of a significant mismatch in expectations as negotiators enter a crucial stretch of talks.

英鎊昨日大漲，此前拉布表示，與歐盟的協(xié)議可能會在11月21日前最終敲定，這突顯出隨著談判進入關(guān)鍵階段，各方的預(yù)期可能會顯著不同。

EU negotiators are open to accelerating talks and calling a special Brexit summit for the bloc’s leaders later this month.

歐盟的談判人員愿意加快談判，并在11月晚些時候召集歐盟領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人舉行一次英國退歐特別峰會。

But limited progress in the Brexit talks in recent days has led diplomats to almost write off the prospects of a summit. One figure on the EU side said he was “flabbergasted” at expectations of an imminent breakthrough.

但最近幾天英國退歐談判進展有限，導(dǎo)致外交官們幾乎抹殺了峰會的前景。歐盟方面的一位人物表示，他對英方期望談判會很快取得突破感到“震驚”。

Britain, by contrast, has been keeping up pressure to show progress. “The end is now firmly in sight and, while obstacles remain, it cannot be beyond us to navigate them,” Mr Raab said in a letter to MPs.

與此形成反差的是，英國保持著拿出進展的壓力。拉布在致下議院議員的一封信中表示：“終點已清晰可見，雖然仍有障礙，但我們并非無法對付它們。”

UK ministers are quietly optimistic a breakthrough in the Brexit negotiations on the vexed issue of the Irish border could be near, giving Mrs May the chance to push a Brexit agreement through parliament before Christmas.

英國的部長級官員們暗自樂觀地認為，圍繞愛爾蘭邊界這一棘手問題的談判可能即將取得突破，讓特里薩·梅(Theresa May)有機會在圣誕節(jié)前推動議會通過退歐協(xié)議。

Ministers say they are hopeful of concluding the deal at a special meeting of EU leaders in mid-November — possibly over the weekend of November 17-18 — which would fit in with the timetable envisaged by Mr Raab.

部長級官員們表示，他們希望在11月中旬——也許是11月17至18日那個周末——舉行的歐盟領(lǐng)導(dǎo)人特別會議上達成退歐協(xié)議，這將與拉布設(shè)想的進度表一致。

However, ambassadors on the EU side have been told by negotiators that more time is likely to be needed to resolve the impasse in the talks over the Irish border. One senior EU diplomat said a November summit “is very unlikely” unless Britain yielded on most of the outstanding issues.

但談判人員告訴歐盟方面的大使，解決愛爾蘭邊境的僵局可能需要更多時間。一位歐盟高級外交官表示，除非英國能在大多數(shù)懸而未決的問題上讓步，否則要在11月的峰會上達成協(xié)議“幾乎不可能”。

Mr Raab said in his letter to MPs on the Commons Brexit select committee that he would be willing to give evidence to them once a withdrawal agreement was finalised. He added he currently expected “November 21 to be suitable”.

拉布在給下議院退歐特別委員會議員們的信中表示，他愿意在退歐協(xié)議敲定后向他們作證。他補充道，他目前預(yù)計“11月21日是恰當(dāng)?shù)?rdquo;。