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Senior EU officials have expressed optimism about the possibility of concluding an agreement on Brexit by the end of the year.
Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, said that the chances of reaching an agreement between the UK and the EU have increased in recent days and could be accepted by November.
At the same time, the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, said that an agreement was possible by the end of 2018.
The UK must leave the EU on March 29, 2019.
However, there is still no agreement on certain issues, including how to avoid new controls at the Irish border.
Both parties had hoped to finalize the so-called divorce agreement and agree on a declaration on their future economic cooperation by a summit of the EU in 11 days.
Addressing Austrian press Friday, Mr Juncker said it was not certain that an agreement could be reached by October.
Asked about the possibility of reaching an agreement at the next meeting of EU leaders on 17 October, Juncker said: "We are not that far, but our desire to reach an agreement with the British government is unshakeable ".
He said that an agreement could be reached by November.
"I have reason to think that the potential for rapprochement between the two parties has increased in recent days," added Mr. Juncker.
He also reiterated his position that a non-agreement scenario "would not be good" for the UK or the EU.
& # 39; The end of the year & # 39;
Speaking Saturday, the President of the European Council, Mr Tusk, said: "We will try [agreeing a deal] in October … and I think there is a chance to have an agreement by the end of the year. "
Foreign Minister Sir Alan Duncan also expressed his optimism about the possibility of reaching an agreement before December.
EU officials also reported a better atmosphere in talks on the Irish border.
The optimistic assessment of the progress of the negotiations has led the pound sterling to recover against the euro and the US dollar.
The BBC correspondent in Brussels, Adam Fleming, said the officials "still seem to insist that the withdrawal agreement as a whole be finally concluded" from here the EU summit.
"Although, if we learned something from Brexit, it's that the schedule is incredibly flexible to use diplomatic language," he told BBC Radio 4's Today show.
Downing Street has distanced itself from the suggestions – according to the Daily Mail – of their concern, Mr Juncker is trying to "convince the UK" to sign a Brexit deal by mid-October.
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Theresa May meets Jean-Claude Juncker at the European Council summit last December
At the same time, the Guardian announced that senior Conservative officials had had private contacts with a number of Labor MPs to persuade them to back Theresa May's contract.
Some Labor MPs mentioned in the article have turned to Twitter to refute these claims. Rachel Reeves tweeted: "All Labor MPs listed work hard and fight the Conservatives every day at the local and national level."
A few weeks after the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, declared that Theresa May's plans were impracticable.
Both parties had hoped to finalize the so-called divorce agreement and agree on a declaration regarding their future economic cooperation by the October summit.
But last month, EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier said that if both parties were "realistic", an agreement could be reached by November, when a summit unique will have been organized.
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The European Commission is also planning to publish an analysis indicating where the two sides agree on elements of their future relations.
It could appear alongside the latest EU emergency plans for a non-agreement scenario, which will be released next week.
Speaking on Any Questions from BBC Radio 4, Sir Alan Duncan also showed optimism about the prospects for an agreement.
"We are in the art of the possible here, and from what I see in the government, I think we will get an agreement, whether in October or November, at the two consecutive summits." , did he declare.
What is the problem of the Irish border?
Currently, thousands of people cross the border every day between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Goods and services flow easily between the two zones without any restrictions.
Since the United Kingdom and Ireland are currently part of the EU's single market and customs union, it is not necessary to control products to determine the rules. customs and standards, but everything could change after Brexit. The United Kingdom wants to exit both the single market and the customs union.
The UK and the EU agreed that they did not want, under any circumstances, a "hard border" – meaning physical checks or the installation of infrastructure such as cameras or customs stations.
Both parties signed this pledge in December 2017.
They hope to be able to do this anyway in a future agreement on new trade relations after Brexit.
But if there were to be a delay or failure in reaching such an agreement, both parties agreed on the need to find a "supportive" solution – which means a plan of last resort – that would maintain the Irish border open.
The problem is that both parties can not agree on the content of the security text.
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The security solution proposed by the EU would allow Northern Ireland to comply with the rules of the customs union and the single market which are essential for the continuation of cross-border cooperation.
But the British government is against this idea, saying it would separate Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK and create a border in the Irish Sea.
Instead, he would like the United Kingdom as a whole to remain aligned with the European Union's customs union for a limited time. But the UK has now signaled that it is "open to discussing some of the options for regulatory oversight".
Negotiators still have to find a solution that is acceptable to both parties.
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