The U.K. government on Wednesday officially began the process of leaving the EU, more than nine months after the electorate voted for Brexit.
A letter from Prime Minister Theresa May was sent to EU leaders, formally asking the union to implement the start of exit talks and ending a relationship that had lasted for 44 years.
President of the European Council Donald Tusk confirmed delivery of the letter on social media.
“After nine months the UK has delivered #Brexit”, he tweeted.”
I will not pretend that I am happy for today. But paradoxically there is something positive in Brexit,” Tusk added.
“Brexit has made us, the community of 27, more determined and more united than before,” he wrote.
Tusk will call a Friday summit with representatives from rest of the EU to agree on political principles to guide the union through the Brexit negotiations.
Speaking in parliament later on Wednesday, May told lawmakers it was “the moment for the country to come together”.
“In accordance with the wishes of the people, the United Kingdom is leaving the European Union,” she said. “This is a historic moment from which there can be no turning back.”
Confirming that clarifying the rights of EU nationals in a post-Brexit Britain would be an early priority, May said she wanted not just to protect the rights of workers, but to build on them.
Once again promising to “represent every person in the whole United Kingdom” during the coming negotiations with the EU, May reiterated her position over a second Scottish independence referendum.
“It is my fierce determination to get the right deal for every single person in this country,” she said.
However, opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn urged May to listen more to all parts of the country.
“The next steps along this journey are the most crucial, and if the prime minister is to unite the country, as she says she aims to do, the government needs to listen, consult and represent the whole country, not just hardline Tory ideologues on her own benches,” Corbyn said.
According to Anadolu Agency, France’s Foreign Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said talks between the European Union and the United Kingdom on their future relationship can take place when Brexit negotiations have concluded.
“When the negotiation of the separation from the membership [of the EU] have been completed then there can be another negotiation on the future relations between the EU and England,” Ayrault told reporters.
He said talks regarding Britain’s exit from the EU would be difficult, adding that May could not decide what she wanted from the deal during ongoing exit negotiations.
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