U.K. and EU exchange volleys over Brexit

LONDON — British Prime Minister Theresa May said Monday there is a positive “new dynamic” in Brexit talks, with Britain and the European Union nearing agreement on the rights of four million citizens whose lives will be affected by the split.

May urged European Union officials to show “leadership and flexibility” in negotiations on Britain’s exit, saying “the ball is in their court.”

The EU, however, lobbed the ball straight back. European Commission spokesperson Margaritis Schinas said the responsibility for progress is “entirely in the U.K. court.”

More than a year has passed since Britain voted to leave the EU, and six months since Britain triggered the two-year countdown to its EU exit. A fifth round of negotiations opened Monday in Brussels, with both sides frustrated by lack of progress.

May told British lawmakers that “there is a new dynamic in the negotiations” since her major Brexit speech in Florence, Italy, last month.

In the Florence speech, May said Britain would be willing to abide by EU rules and pay into its coffers during a transition period of about two years after Brexit in 2019. She also signalled Britain would pay what it owes to settle financial commitments it has made to the bloc, but without naming a figure.

EU leaders have called her suggestions positive but asked for more details. Few were forthcoming.

The U.K is increasingly anxious to move talks on to discussing future trade relations, but so far the EU says there hasn’t been “sufficient progress” on the major divorce terms — the size of the Brexit bill, the status of the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland and the rights of three million EU citizens living in Britain and one million Britons in other member states.