Boris Johnson escalated his dispute with the European Union by warning he will do whatever it takes to keep goods flowing from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.

Following talks with the EU’s key figures, the Prime Minister said he would not hesitate to take unilateral action to protect the position of Northern Ireland in the increasingly bitter row over post-Brexit trading arrangements.

The Prime Minister met French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, European Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen and European Council president Charles Michel in the margins of the G7 summit in Cornwall.

But Mr Johnson appeared frustrated at the way the talks had gone, saying: “I’ve talked to some of our friends here today who do seem to misunderstand that the UK is a single country and a single territory.

“I think they just need to get that into their heads.”

The Herald:

Mr Johnson insisted he did not want a trade war with Brussels, which has threatened to retaliate unless the UK imposes restrictions agreed as part of the Brexit deal signed by Mr Johnson.

The row – dubbed the “sausage war” – could mean chilled meats will not be shipped across the Irish Sea because of EU rules after the end of the month.

The UK is considering extending the current grace period without the consent of Brussels to ensure that sausages and mince can continue to reach Northern Ireland’s shops.

The Prime Minister told Sky News he would do “whatever it takes”, including using Article 16 of the protocol to act without Brussels’ agreement.

“I think if the protocol continues to be applied in this way then we will obviously not hesitate to invoke Article 16,” he said.

He suggested the EU was adopting a “theologically draconian” approach to the protocol, which effectively keeps Northern Ireland in the EU’s single market for goods as a way of making sure there is not a hard border with Ireland and preserving the peace process.

That means goods crossing the Irish Sea from Great Britain need to be checked to make sure they comply with EU rules.

“I certainly think that the protocol is capable of being used and interpreted – by the way, up to the EU – in a pragmatic way or a theologically draconian way,” Mr Johnson told 5 News.

European Commission chief Mrs von der Leyen said “we want the best possible relations with the UK” but stressed that “both sides must implement what we agreed on” in the Brexit deal.

French sources suggested Mr Macron told the Prime Minister that for relations between France and the UK to be “reset”, Mr Johnson must abide by the agreement.

Meanwhile, the main business of the summit saw the leaders discuss building resilience to future crises, foreign policy issues and the response to Covid-19.

The group committed to a new plan – the Carbis Bay Declaration – to quash future pandemics within the first 100 days, while the UK is creating a new animal vaccine centre aimed at preventing future diseases crossing to humans.

The White House said the leaders had also agreed a Build Back Better World (B3W) plan to help meet the infrastructure need in low and middle-income countries.

The move is a response to China’s “belt and road” initiative, which has increased Beijing’s influence in countries around the world.

A senior US administration official said the Chinese government’s approach had a lack of transparency, poor environmental and labour standards and had left many countries worse off.

“But until now, we haven’t offered a positive alternative that reflects our values, our standards, and our way of doing business,” the source said.

As part of Mr Johnson’s “Global Britain” agenda, the leaders of South Korea, India, Australia and South Africa were also taking part in summit events, expanding the G7 to take in other prominent democracies.

Those leaders attending the event – India’s Narendra Modi is participating remotely because of the coronavirus crisis in his country – will close the day at a beach barbeque, toasting marshmallows around fire pits while drinking buttered rum and listening to sea shanties.

The RAF’s Red Arrows display team was due to perform a flypast over the Carbis Bay venue.

The Prime Minister was spotted going for an early morning run on the beach before his meetings with the EU leaders on Saturday.