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DUP Commons Leader Slams Dublin's Demand to Set Border in Irish Sea

© REUTERS / Phil NobleThe leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), Arlene Foster, and the Deputy Leader Nigel Dodds, stand on the steps of 10 Downing Street before talks with Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May, in central London, Britain June 13, 2017
The leader of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), Arlene Foster, and the Deputy Leader Nigel Dodds, stand on the steps of 10 Downing Street before talks with Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May, in central London, Britain June 13, 2017 - Sputnik International
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The leader of Northern Ireland's DUP Parliamentary Party considers demands of the Irish government to introduce a border with the UK at the Irish Sea.

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MOSCOW (Sputnik) —The demands of the Irish government to introduce a border with the United Kingdom at the Irish Sea is unacceptable because it will make it more difficult for people from Northern Ireland to travel to other parts of the United Kingdom and cause losses to local businesses, Nigel Dodds, the Leader of Northern Ireland's DUP Parliamentary Party, said Friday.

On Thursday, Leo Varadkar, Ireland's newly-elected Taoiseach, expressed his disagreement with the UK government's earlier proposals to establish a hi-tech post-Brexit land border between Republic of Ireland and Norther Ireland, saying that it could undermine the peace process on the island. Instead, he proposed that border checks be carried out at ports and airports, which would make the Irish Sea the country's border.

"This apparent hardening of attitudes within the Irish Government is untimely and unhelpful. The DUP will not tolerate a border on the Irish Sea after Brexit that makes it more difficult to live, work and travel between different parts of the United Kingdom. The Prime Minister has already reiterated this. At Westminster we will continue to use the influence of our 10 MPs to ensure that respect for the integrity of the UK remains at the core of the negotiations process," Dodds said in a statement published on the DUP website.

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Dodds stressed that the United Kingdom was the biggest market for Norther Ireland's goods and services, accounting for over 70 percent trade flows in and out of Belfast Harbour. He went on to emphasize that setting a border on the Irish Sea would be beneficial for Republic of Ireland in terms of economic activities in Northern Ireland, while the latter would sustain big losses in its trade with other states of the United Kingdom.

"The Irish Government has every right to advocate for their economy and citizens in the ongoing talks; however it is wrong that peace in Northern Ireland should be exploited in this way. The suggestion that unmanned technology could somehow spark a return to violence is not one that a majority of people on either side of the border can countenance. Irrespective of what side of the referendum result they stand it is time for all sides and all political parties to call out this type of scare-tactic for what it is," Dodds said.

The border between Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland is one of the key issues requiring a solution before Brexit, since the United Kingdom will face almost 310 miles long land border with the European Union. Shortly after the referendum, Republic of Ireland warned that setting old-fashioned hard land border would hinder the Northern Irish peace process. In response, the UK government offered to introduce a high-tech land border, based the experience of the Scandinavian countries, which use surveillance cameras, automatic number plate recognition and pre-tagged containers.

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