A DUP MEP has rejected suggestions that she is "missing an opportunity" by not meeting Michel Barnier during his visit to the border.
The EU's chief negotiator is due to visit Derry on Tuesday.
The DUP's Diane Dodds said she has already committed to meetings in London.
She said: "I have many, many opportunities to speak to Michel Barnier and I never miss opportunities.
"I was told by the EU Commission that this was an opportunity to meet stakeholders and not politicians.
"I certainly meet Michel Barnier on a very regular basis and debate with him in the Strasbourg chamber."
Ms Dodds told the BBC: "Michel Barnier has no doubt about the views of the DUP and the people that I represent on the issue of Brexit and the issue of the border, on the issue of the customs union and the single market."
Her fellow MEP, Sinn Féin's Martina Anderson, said that the visit would have otherwise provided the chance for the north's three MEPs to "collectively" express views on the implications of Brexit.
"It is not for me to tell Diane at all what she should be prioritising, but here we have the commissioner who is leading the negotiations in our constituency on Tuesday," she said.
The visit of the EU's chief negotiator comes a week after Brexit secretary David Davis made an unannounced trip to south Armagh, later apologising for failing to observe protocol and notify Newry and Armagh MP Mickey Brady.
Meanwhile, the SDLP hosted a delegation of Labour MEPs during a visit to the border in south Armagh on Friday.
Seb Dance, Julie Ward and Linda McAvan MEP joined SDLP MLAs Claire Hanna, Justin McNulty and Sinéad Bradley to meet with businesses representatives at Flurrybridge Enterprise Centre in Jonesborough.
The delegation also visited the former British Army checkpoint at Forkhill and met with representatives of the campaign group Border Communities Against Brexit.
Mr Davis last week suggested that the EU was using the "artificial deadline" of June - when a major summit of EU leaders will hear updates on progress on the border issue - as a negotiating tactic, and dismissed reports that the European Commission has rejected British proposals to avoid a hard border.
Mr Brady, who also met with the Labour MEPs during their trip, said: "Unlike David Davis, whose pathetic box ticking visit was universally ridiculed, I hope this Labour delegation will take our concerns on board and use their influence to ensure our interests are protected in the Brexit negotiations."
