The EU27 held firmly to their position on Friday 21 October, while appreciating British Prime Minister Theresa May's information about her country's situation with regard to its relations with the European Union.
According to a European source, no European leader spoke out to open up discussion once May had presented her intentions, although she limited herself to saying what she had already said at the Conservative party conference in Birmingham in early October – in particular, the commitment to trigger Article 50 by the end of March.
At the end of the first working session of the European Council, some leaders thought that May's stance had been constructive and that she had not announced the intention of a 'hard Brexit'. This is essentially what Luxembourg's Prime Minister Xavier Bettel stated. He also said that according to May, European legislation will continue to be reflected in British legislation.
Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel appreciated the fact that May would like the future negotiation to be in the interest of the UK, but "not to the detriment of the EU27". In practice, this will be "a difficult road to go down", Merkel nevertheless thought, describing May's words as a "good working basis".
May "presented her approach", France's President François Hollande briefly stated. "She's embarking in a constructive spirit, but we will see in March". In the meantime, Hollande said that the red lines remained the same – in other words, respect of the four freedoms of the single market and "no pre-negotiations".
May confirmed that before the end of March 2017 she would trigger Article 50 of the treaty on the modalities for a country leaving the EU, said European Council President Donald Tusk. He added that the UK would remain a full member of the EU "with its rights and obligations" until the divorce was pronounced. He answered questions about potentially sidelining the UK from certain common discussions.
After notification of the British desire to leave the EU, there is nevertheless "a legal obligation to meet as 27" to discuss the exit, Tusk said. "If you ask me, I would prefer the 28 format for the coming months, years and decades", he added with regret, saying that the reversible nature or not of the decision to leave the EU "was in the hands of the British". (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic with Emmanuel Hagry, Mathieu Bion and Jan Kordys)