Divorce has to come first, he said, and he warned that the negotiations could be “confrontational.”
It’s about damage control.” He added that the European Union would not pursue
a “punitive approach,” because “Brexit in itself is already punitive enough.”
He also wrote: “After more than 40 years of being united, we owe it to each other to make this divorce as smooth as possible.”
“This is my first divorce, and I hope the last one.”
European Council President Donald Tusk: ’This is my first divorce, and I hope the last.’
The words were tough, but unsurprising: For months, since Britain voted in a June 23 referendum to leave the bloc, Brussels has insisted
that the terms of a future trade agreement would not be negotiated until the terms of the divorce were clear.
Ms. Merkel and President François Hollande of France have insisted
that London first agree on how to protect the rights of more than about three million expatriates in Britain, and more than one million British citizens living in Continental Europe, and on the amount of money Britain owes to cover its commitments as a member of the bloc.
BRUSSELS — Britain must agree to pay its bills and to protect millions of Europeans living in Britain before reaching a
new trading relationship with the European Union, Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, said on Friday.
Tells U. K. -
By JAMES KANTERMARCH 31, 2017
All 27 remaining European Union member states “will be united” during the negotiations with Britain, Donald Tusk said.
