With Brexit "done" as far as London is concerned, UK and EU negotiators on Monday begin talks aimed at forging a future relationship -- while brandishing red lines that may yet prove to be irreconcilable, Eurasia Diary reports citing AFP.

The discussions covering trade and trading standards, agriculture, security, transport, energy, fisheries and police cooperation kick off in Brussels under teams run by Frenchman Michel Barnier for the EU and governmental advisor David Frost for Britain.

They take place just over a month since Britain ceased to be an EU member, and are meant to wrap up by the end of this year -- an exceedingly tight timeframe that few see as feasible for anything more than the barest of bare-bones accords.

The UK's current transition period, during which it trades like an EU member with no tariffs or other barriers, ends on December 31. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has ruled out extending it, though he has the option to do so.

Experts say they see a potential landing zone for an agreement on future relations based mainly on trade in goods, but only if both sides give up a little ground from their political rhetoric.

"Clearly, at the beginning of any negotiation, there's a bit of posturing. Both sides want to state the strongest possible case," said Fabian Zuleeg, head of the European Policy Centre.

The EU demand for parallel standards and the UK's insistence on legal autonomy could be bridged in ways both sides claim as wins, they say.