German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, on Monday at a press conference in Berlin played down expectations of a rapid round of negotiations aimed at ending Britain’s membership in the European Union.
She stressed at the meeting the need to wait for the British to invoke the respective clauses.
“We will react depending on what they wish. We will wait and see what they place on the table.
The press conference came ahead of Tuesday conference by the British Prime Minister, Theresa May, in which she is expected to unveil her plans for a so-called “hard Brexit.”
Merkel said Britain and Europe were bracing themselves for May’s plan, which is expected to include Britain pulling out of both the EU single market and European customs union.
Meanwhile, U.S. President-elect Donald Trump, in wide-ranging interview with the London Times and the German tabloid, Bild, expressed his admiration for both Germany and Britain.
But he also said he thought that Britain was smart to leave the EU because the Brussels-based bloc “is basically a vehicle for Germany”.
Trump said he would move quickly to seal a new trade deal with Britain and that May would be visiting him “right after” he gets into the White House.
“We’re gonna work very hard to get it done quickly and done properly. Good for both sides.
In the interview, Trump told Conservative politician Michael Gove “I love the UK” and predicted that other member states would follow Britain’s lead and leave the EU.
He said that Trump was confident a “win-win” trade deal between Britain and the U.S. could be “signature-ready at the earliest possible opportunity.”
Gove, a fierce campaigner for Britain to leave the EU, said Trump seemed to be “emotionally and financially invested” in Brexit and felt a “vicarious sense of ownership” about Britain’s EU departure. (dpa/NAN)