European Union leaders fear Prime Minister Theresa May's shock loss of her majority in the snap British election will delay Brexit talks due to start this month and raise the risk of negotiations failing.
Guenther Oettinger, the German member of the European Commission, said it was unclear if negotiations could be launched on Monday, June 19, as planned. The talks, which the EU wants to ensure a legally smooth British departure in March 2019, would be more uncertain without a strong negotiating partner, he said.
His French colleague Pierre Moscovici said the result would affect the negotiations but declined to be drawn on whether the EU executive hoped Britain might ask to stay. He told Europe 1 radio that Brexit was supported by most of the last parliament following the referendum a year ago and that the timetable for leaving in 2019 was not "optional" but fixed in treaty law.
Reference: Reuters
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