EU, Britain start 4th round of trade talks for post-Brexit era

Britain and the European Union are scheduled to start a fourth round of talks on a post-Brexit trade deal on Tuesday.

Negotiators from London and Brussels will engage in intensive talks over the coming week via video link.

Previous rounds of talks in April and May ended in a stalemate, with London and Brussels blaming each other for the lack of progress.

The future of fishing rights off the coast of the British Isles is expected to be one of the key agenda topics during the four days of talks, involving hundreds of negotiators from both sides.

Four separate sessions on fishing rights are scheduled, more than any other single topic.

A closing plenary session Friday will reveal the extent of any progress made during the week.

The Guardian in London Tuesday described fishing as a drop in the ocean of the UK economy, representing just 0.12 percent of economic output, adding the issue has become one of the most intractable in the Brexit talks.

Britain ended its EU membership on Jan. 31 but continues to follow Brussels' rules under a transition period lasting until Dec. 31.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has insisted Britain will not seek to extend the transition period beyond the end of this year.

The talks this week will be the last before Johnson attends a critical high-level meeting with EU leaders later in June to evaluate what progress has been made during the negotiations.