Moreover, Britain suddenly finds itself very much alone on the world stage. As of April 1, as things currently stand (and there’s no plan B in the wings), the U.K. will no longer be in the European Union, with everything that entails. Not least is the loss of frictionless and duty-free trade with nearly half a billion souls. And no one is rushing to save Britain by offering better trade terms, least of all its old “special” ally, the United States.[...]
Trump, who has been a Brexit cheerleader from the start—he was elected only a few months after the Brexit referendum and incongruously cheered the result during a visit to one of his Scottish golf courses—has made a brutally hard process even harder every step of the way for May. Last fall, Trump blindsided May by calling her proposed pullout agreement “a great deal for the EU,” then cast doubt on whether he could negotiate with her at all, in part because May’s pact would have required a 21-month transition period.[...]
More to the point, while standing alone, the U.K. is not a priority for anyone. For example, Leigh noted, Australia and New Zealand are currently in talks on trade deals with the European Union and making it a priority over any hypothetical talks with Britain. A market of 450 million outweighs one of 65 million.
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