Post-Brexit: From Integration to Confrontation

The article is devoted to the analysis of current relations between the European Union and the United Kingdom, as well as the possibilities for creating a closer partnership. The article considers three areas of mutual interest for the parties – the preservation of the EU regulatory framework in British law, cooperation in Northern Ireland and the development of trade relations. The author comes to the conclusion that the presence of objective prerequisites for the creation of a new integration format does not automatically lead to its implementation. On the contrary, the ruling elite of Britain is aimed at maximum distance from the EU rules, which is expressed, in particular, in the consistent change of the Union legislation preserved in national law and the desire to abolish specific regulation in Northern Ireland. Special attention is paid to the situation around the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol and the British bill, which cancels its effect unilaterally. The author concludes that instead of a unique integration format and the prosperity of the region, the parties may, in extreme cases, come to a state of trade war and exacerbate contradictions within Northern Ireland.