Northern Ireland Conflict in the Brexit Context: Political Challenges of Identity

In the paper, the consequences of the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union are addressed in connection to the status of Northern Ireland and intercommunity relations in the region. Having analyzed the conflict's nature, the authors conclude that neither ethnic nor religious but rather political aspects are dominant. The EU has played an important role in the complex process of peace-building; the Europeanization rules were practically implemented, since both the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland were the EU members, as well as the members of the European Single Market and the EU Customs Union. Also, the principles of multilevel governance were applied, provided in the Good Friday Agreement. Eventually, Brexit led to the disturbance of a fragile consensus formed after the GFA and brought back to agenda the issue of the island unification under the republican banner. The agreement reached between the EU and the UK means that a visible border on the island is absent, which is profitable for the Irish/Republican community but separates the region regulatorily from the rest of the country. This state of affairs causes natural dissatisfaction within the Unionist community. Taking into account the predominantly political nature of the conflict, the authors analyze the actual dynamics of the intersegmental discrepancies in the Northern Ireland and the possibilities to settle the managerial contradictions caused by Brexit. Since the attitude toward Brexit and Ireland's political future is defined largely by the community affiliation, the risks of further destabilization in the region are high, as well as of re-actualization of the conflict potential.