“Now the United Kingdom made a decision to leave and therefore the member states who remain in the European Union must discuss how to improve the European Union and how to protect especially the Eurozone countries”, he told reporters. Stock markets plummeted Friday, with the Dow Jones industrial average dropping 611 points, or 3.4 per cent, its biggest fall since August.
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U.S. President Barack Obama on Friday tried to limit the fallout from Britain’s vote to leave the European Union which threatens to harm the U.S. economic recovery and distract U.S. allies from global security issues.
While the Prime Minister will attend the European Union summit tomorrow, he will be pointedly left outside the room on Wednesday as the other 27 members discuss measures including security and counter-terrorism.
Across Europe leading Eurosceptic politicians queued up this morning to crow about the United Kingdom referendum result.
Leaders of Eurosceptic parties in France, the Netherlands and Italy quickly demanded referendums in their own countries.
“The chain reaction that the eurosceptics are celebrating everywhere will absolutely not happen”, he told Germany’s ZDF television.
‘The EU said yesterday that no negotiations could begin with the United Kingdom until the process is started formally – and officials warned the country would not be able to finalise a trade deal until after it has left.
“Since the attacks, the atmosphere has been pretty heavy”, the EPP member said on condition of anonymity, referring to the Islamic State-claimed attacks that killed 32 people in Brussels on March 22.
Brussels is coming to terms with the loss of one of the world’s sixth largest economy and now other countries are contemplating leaving the bloc if it calls for more integration. “That's the last time you are applauding here”, Mr Juncker said after the fiercely anti-EU politician applauded his opening statement that Europe “must respect British democracy and the way it has expressed its view”.
But many also urged solidarity.
The British prime minister, who announced his resignation in an emotional speech in Downing Street, has said he will leave it to his successor to invoke Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty. “Nevertheless, UEAPME remains convinced that the common European way is the best way to achieve that goal”, said president Ulrike Rabmer-Koller.
But he also echoed the voices of many in calling for change, saying: “Europe must be more operational, flexible, less bureaucratic and much more perceptive to the diversity that its member states represent”. “We must break away from the dogma of ever more Europe”.
European Union leaders will meet in Brussels on Tuesday to discuss the fallout.
Financial markets seem to have taken the vote as the final word on Britain’s relationship with the European Union, cutting an eye-popping 10 per cent off the pound’s value.
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That deal is ended by the Leave vote.
