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The EU Commission said its boss did not back the secession of states like Texas and Ohio despite his controversial comments in a speech yesterday, which caused diplomatic shockwaves on both sides of the Atlantic. However, a spokesman also insisted that the Brussels chief was not joking when he made the remarks and said they were designed to articulate serious concerns about Donald Trump’s eurosceptic stance.

GETTY Jean-Claude Juncker caused a stir in the US with his remarks

The Republican has previously enraged EU officials by describing Brexit as a “great thing” for the UK and has hinted that other countries could also profit from following Britain’s lead and quitting the project. And Mr Juncker’s controversial remarks, made during a speech in Malta, appeared to be in response to a recent statement by White House press secretary Sean Spicer that Mr Trump was “a leader in the effort to call for Brexit”.

GETTY The EU chief railed against Donald Trump's euroscepticism

EbS EU spokesman Alexander Winterstein insisted the EU chief did not back the break up of the US

Addressing the annual conference of his centre-right European People’s Party in Valetta yesterday, the EU boss remarked with a serious delivery that he could retaliate by asdvocating the break up of the US. He said: “Brexit isn’t the end. A lot of people would like it that way, even people on another continent where the newly elected US President was happy that the Brexit was taking place and has asked other countries to do the same. “If he goes on like that I am going to promote the independence of Ohio and Austin, Texas in the US.” The remarks provoked a storm both in Europe and the US, with former Ukip leader and close friend of Mr Trump, Nigel Farage, saying the EU Commission boss was a “fool” for drawing such a comparison.

He does not suggest that certain states should secede from the United States EU Commission

They were widely reported in American media where the threat was being taken seriously, if not entirely literally, as a further example of the deteriorating relations between Brussels and Washington. And today EU officials tried to draw a line under the furore, insisting that Mr Juncker had made the comparison before and that he was trying to highlight the ridiculous nature of the US President’s euroscepticism. EU Commission deputy chief spokesman Alexander Winterstein told reporters: “You will have seen that this is not the first time the President draws this analogy and I think he’s making a point that is as simple as it is valid. “He does not suggest that certain states should secede from the United States and at the same time I think he considers it also not terribly appropriate for other heads of states to suggest that member states of the EU leave the EU. So I think that’s the comparison that he’s drawing.”

Donald Tusk and Jean-Claude Juncker attend the EPP Summit in Malta Thu, March 30, 2017 Donald Tusk and Jean-Claude Juncker attend the EPP Summit in Malta Play slideshow Getty Images 1 of 10 Donald Tusk and Jean-Claude Juncker attend the EPP Summit in Malta