Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said the proposals released by British Prime Minister Theresa May this weekend can input into the negotiations on the future relations between the EU and the UK.
However, he said there was some concerns about the workability of the UK’s customs proposals.
He said time was running short and it was now approaching “crunch time” in negotiations.
“Time is running short and we are approaching crunch time in negotiations and we continue to have some concerns about the workability of the UK’s customs proposals,” he said.
“We look forward to seeing the White Paper later in the week so that we know more detail,” he added.
The Taoiseach also said there would still have to be a backstop agreement, and said the UK’s single market proposal could go some of the way to providing a solution to the border issue.
Speaking following talks with Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz, Mr Varadkar said that Ireland can be more optimistic than a week ago.
He said he also raised the was a possibility of using an informal EU summit in Salzburg in September for negotiations on Brexit.
Mr Kurz said it was positive that there was now a Brexit position from the UK, but added that there were still many open questions.
The Austrian Chancellor said he totally supported the Irish position and said there was now a duty to focus on the Irish interests in the agreement.
His visit coincides with the start of Austria’s six-month presidency of the European Council.
In addition to Brexit, the two leaders discussed bilateral relations, international trade and migration, as well as the priorities for the Austrian presidency.
Tomorrow, Mr Kurz will visit the border, accompanied by the Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Michael Creed before travelling to London to meet British Prime Minister Theresa May.
