The protocol was agreed by the EU and UK during the Brexit negotiations in a bid to prevent a hard border on the island of Ireland. It was designed to keep trade flowing smoothly on the island and to avoid a hard border and checkpoints.
Under the agreement signed by Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Brussels, Northern Ireland remained part of the EU’s Single Market.
But Stormont’s Agriculture Minister Edwin Poots – a vocal critic of the protocol – has held talks with acting US consul general in Belfast Bryan Wockley to discuss the post-Brexit trading arrangements.
Mr Poots said: “I highlighted the concerns I am hearing from businesses about the impact the protocol is having and stressed that NI’s agri-food sector continues to be disproportionately affected.
“We need permanent solutions to the issues and I will continue to push the UK Government and EU to make sure that Northern Ireland’s businesses and people are not disadvantaged.”
Mr Poots added how he indicated his desire for a UK/US trade deal.
He continued: “The US market for agri-products is very important to us – we have been sending our high-quality dairy and pork products to the US for many years and I welcome the decision last year by the US authorities to grant market access to two NI beef processors.
“I am keen to see a continuation of the UK-US trade talks which will bring much-needed confidence at a time of great uncertainty for the NI agri-food industry.”
Back in January, a row over coronavirus vaccine supplies prompted the EU to use the “nuclear” option of invoking Article 16.
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Many goods travelling from the British mainland to Northern Ireland are subject to customs checks.
Since the 2016 referendum, Mr Biden has been a vocal critic of Brexit.
Ahead of his presidential win last year, Mr Biden warned Ireland must “not become a casualty” of Brexit, intervening to try and dissuade Mr Johnson from following through with the Internal Market Bill.
Mr Biden, who has Irish ancestry, warned: “We can’t allow the Good Friday Agreement that brought peace to Northern Ireland to become a casualty of Brexit.
“Any trade deal between the US and UK must be contingent upon respect for the Agreement and preventing the return of a hard border. Period.”
Just last month, Ireland’s Taoiseach Micheál Martin held a virtual summit with Mr Biden to mark St Patrick’s Day.
Mr Martin said he wants to see a “continuation” of Mr Biden’s support for Ireland and for the Northern Ireland peace deal, known as the Good Friday Agreement.
He said: “We want to see a continuation of the president’s interest in Ireland and support for the peace process and the Good Friday Agreement and also of upholding the Brexit agreement itself.”
