Theresa May is trying to play the role of the great conciliator today. She has avoided any hint of triumphalism or saying anything that the European Union would instantly reject. Instead, she has emphasised her desire for a ‘deep and special partnership’ with the European Union and that the UK wants to be the ‘best friend and neighbour’ to the EU. She has not repeated her Lancaster House message that she thinks ‘no deal is better than a bad deal’ or threatened to change the UK economic model if no free trade agreement with the EU can be struck.
The Article 50 letter that May has sent to Tusk also strikes a conciliatory note. But, unsurprisingly, it makes clear that the UK wants to discuss the ‘future partnership’ alongside the withdrawal agreement. Interestingly, it adds that security cooperation ‘would be weakened’ if the UK left the EU without a deal—which is the closest the letter comes to containing a threat.
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