Brexit talks may be compromised, Europe fears

BRUSSELS: European Union leaders fear Prime Minister Theresa May’s shock loss of her majority in the British election will delay Brexit talks and raise the risk of negotiations failing.

Guenther Oettinger, the German member of the European Commission, said it was unclear whether negotiations could be launched on June 19 as planned and a weak British government raised the risk that talks could fail to reach a deal that could limit disruption when Britain leaves in March 2019.

‘‘We need a government that can act,’’ Oettinger told the Deutschlandfunk radio station. ‘‘With a weak negotiating partner, there’s the danger that the negotiations will turn out badly.’’

Michel Barnier, the EU executive’s negotiator, made it clear they could start only once Britain had a team in place.

‘‘Brexit negotiations should start when UK is ready,’’ he tweeted. ‘‘Timetable and EU positions are clear. Let’s put our minds together on striking a deal.’’

But EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said it was ‘‘difficult to predict’’ when Britain would have a clear strategy.

Germany’s European affairs minister, Michael Roth, said time was tight until the expiry of a twoyear window to reach a negotiated deal. ‘‘We should not waste any time,’’ he said.

Few Europeans voiced much sympathy for May. Some compared her with her predecessor, David Cameron, who sought to silence eurosceptic fellow Conservatives by calling the referendum on EU membership last June that ended his career and shocked Europe.

‘‘Yet another own goal; after Cameron, now May will make already complex negotiations even more complicated,’’ tweeted Guy Verhofstadt, the liberal former Belgian premier who is the European Parliament’s point man for the Brexit process.

German conservative Markus Ferber, an EU lawmaker involved in discussions on access to EU markets for Britain’s financial sector, was scathing.

‘‘At the most untimely point,’’ he said, ‘‘the British political system is in total disarray. Instead of strong and stable leadership, we witness chaos and uncertainty.’’

May, who had campaigned against Brexit last year, delivered her terms for withdrawal in March, binding London into a tight, twoyear countdown to departure. These terms include a clean break from the EU single market. May then called the election, hoping for a big majority to strengthen her negotiating hand.

That was also the broadly desired outcome in Brussels, where leaders believed a stronger May would be better able to cut compromise deals with the EU and resist pressure from hardline proBrexit factions in her party that have called for Britain to reject EU terms and, possibly, walk out without a deal.

European leaders have largely given up considering the possibility that Britain might change its mind and ask to stay. Most now appear to prefer that it leave smoothly and quickly. Having recovered from last year’s shock, Germany, France and other leading powers see Brexit as a chance to tighten EU integration without the awkward British.

Talk in Britain that a different ruling coalition could seek a ‘‘softer’’ Brexit than May has proposed, possibly seeking to remain in the single market, is also problematic for the EU.

While the 27 might be willing to extend to Britain the same kind of access to EU markets that they offer to Norway or Switzerland, they have made clear that would mean Britain continuing to pay into the EU budget and obey EU rules while no longer having any say in how the Union’s policies are set.

EU officials question how any British government could persuade voters to accept such a package, so would be wary of starting negotiations for fear of ending up without a deal that both sides could ratify. — Reuters