LONDON – Dozens of police officers have been injured in more than a week of unrest in Northern Ireland, where anger over the effects of Brexit on the British region intersects with crime and the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The disorder highlights the continuing challenges surrounding the split of the UK with the European Union for British and EU leaders, who are keen to prevent the delicate arrangements for conducting trade between the bloc and its former member state a difficult one. attainable peace in North Africa. Ireland which ended decades of violence.
The White House on Thursday expressed its concern over the violence. The press secretary, Jen Psaki, said the government had joined the British, Irish and Northern Irish leaders in their calls for calm, and reaffirmed US support for a ‘safe and prosperous Northern Ireland in which all communities’ have a voice and enjoy the gains of the heavily won. peace. ”
Northern Ireland politicians and analysts say the nightly riots in mostly Protestant areas reflect the resentment among pro-British trade unionists in Northern Ireland over what they see as a series of concessions to Irish nationalists, who want the UK region to break away and unite with the Republic of Ireland.
The most important of these are trade arrangements related to Brexit, which puts unions at risk of weakening ties between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, while strengthening the region’s ties with Ireland and the EU.