EU Urges Britain to Start Brexit Talks 'As Soon As Possible'
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Britain should launch formal Brexit negotiations quickly and the bloc will not allow itself to be held back if London hesitates to trigger Article 50 of the EU treaty, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker was quoted as saying on Saturday.
"I will not meddle in Britain's domestic politics," Juncker told German media group Funke. "But it would be in the best interest of all parties if the divorce letter is submitted as soon as possible to not unnecessarily prolong the phase of uncertainty."
British Prime Minister Theresa May has signaled that she could be ready to launch formal Brexit negotiations in January or February next year, European Council President Donald Tusk said, citing a recent talk with May.
Junker's comments come after EU leaders met in the Slovak capital with the British conspicuously absent, TeleSUR reported.
The 27 other EU members unveiled a six-month "road map" of measures designed to restore public confidence in Europe's ailing common project.
But several leaders, including Italy's Matteo Renzi and Hungary's Viktor Orban, shattered the facade of unity as soon as the meeting ended, underscoring how divided the bloc remains after years of economic crisis, a record influx of migrants and a series of deadly attacks by militants.
"I'm not satisfied with the (summit) conclusions on growth or on immigration," said Renzi, apparently miffed at being excluded from a joint news conference given by Germany's Angela Merkel and France's Francois Hollande at the end of the summit.
"To define as a step forward today's document on migrants would require a form of fantasy, a verbal high-wire act," the Italian prime minister added.
Orban criticized Merkel for refusing to agree to a ceiling on the number of migrants entering Europe, calling her welcoming stance towards refugees "self-destructive and naive". Until the policy was corrected, the Hungarian premier said, a "suction effect" would continue to draw masses to Europe.
People who were in the summit room said that neither Orban nor Renzi had raised serious complaints with other leaders during the talks, which were described as cordial. "This is clearly about domestic politics," one senior official said.
