Will Brexit Reopen Old Wounds Between Ireland and Northern Ireland?

Perhaps the most discernible aspect of the border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland is just how indiscernible it is. With few signposts marking the end of one jurisdiction and the beginning of another, travelers going between the two rely on subtle clues indicating they’ve crossed from one country into another—the changing color of road signs, speed limits switching from kilometers (the Republic) to miles (Northern Ireland), or the more obvious shift between sightings of the Irish tricolor and the Union Jack.  

But this seemingly invisible border may not stay that way for long. With the United Kingdom’s vote last summer to leave the European Union, both parties now face the challenge of determining what the and the U.K.’s to the EU, the border issue has emerged as one of the most contentious in Brexit talks thus far. EU leaders have threatened not to move forward on other topics, such as working out a trade deal between the U.K. and the EU, before all three issues are addressed.