Gone are the days when officials in Brussels were secretly hoping the U.K. would somehow reverse course. Now, nearly a year after the start of talks, even some of Britain’s closest allies on the Continent, like the Netherlands and Luxembourg, are eager for Brexit to be over and done with. [...]
But the European Council’s swift approval of the guidelines — despite the absence of a clear solution for the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland — reflects both fatigue among officials eager to focus on the European Union’s own future, and a desire to be rid of U.K. perennial demands for special treatment. [...]
To be sure, the EU27 are not entirely thrilled with how Brexit is shaping up. They would far prefer if May and her government had taken what Brussels views as an eminently more reasonable approach and agreed to remain inside the EU’s single market and customs union. The guidelines approved on Friday include a provision to emphasize that the U.K. would be more than welcome to change its mind. [...]
But Brussels has also softened its tone: At the beginning of the talks there was the idea that London had to be punished for its decision, something similar to what occurred with Greece. Then French President François Hollande said that “there must be a threat, there must be a risk, there must be a price. Otherwise we will be in a negotiation that cannot end well.”
No comments:
Post a Comment