Revealing his Brexit negotiation guidelines on Friday, European Council President Donald Tusk said the bloc would not try to punish the UK for leaving, but warned that negotations would be long, complex and sometimes confrontational, adding that the Brexit itself was "punitive enough."

Tusk said the EU would take a "phased approach" to the UK's divorce - meaning leaders would decide "when sufficient progress has been achieved to allow negotiations to proceed to the next phase."

Such an approach would mean that the EU would be willing to discuss a future trade deal with the UK before the two sides reach a common Brexit agreement.

However, the guidelines explicitly stated that no future trade deal would be signed before the UK completes its withdrawal by March 2019. The position is an outright rejection of British Prime Minister Theresa May's call for the UK and EU to negotiate both Brexit and a future relationship in tandem.

"Starting parallel talks on all issues at the same time as suggested by some in the UK will not happen," Tusk said. "Once and only once we have achieved significant progress on the withdrawal can we discuss the framework for our future relationship."

Following Friday's press conference, Tusk tweeted that the EU and UK "owe it to each other to make this divorce as smooth as possible."



May on Wednesday signed the letter formally invoking Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, triggering a two-year withdrawal process from the EU and ending Britain's 44-year membership in the bloc.

Tusk's proposals are subject to revision until April 29, when leaders from the EU 27 will then formally adopt them at a special summit.

Brexit: What lies ahead? What is Article 50? Article 50 of the Treaty of Lisbon gives any existing member of the European Union the right to quit unilaterally and outlines the procedure for doing so. It gives the state concerned two years to negotiate a deal for its exit. Once Article 50 is triggered, it cannot be stopped, except by the unanimous consent of all member states.

Brexit: What lies ahead? What does Article 50 actually say? There are five elements in Article 50. They state that the exiting country must notify the European Council formally and that it is given a two-year period to reach an agreement. Article 50 also states that the country concerned cannot take part in EU’s internal discussions about its departure. The exit deal must be approved by a "qualified majority" and must also get the backing of MEPs.

Brexit: What lies ahead? When will it be triggered? The UK decided in favor of leaving the EU in a referendum in June 2016. After lengthy parliamentary debates and legal procedures, Prime Minister Theresa May looks all set to send a formal letter of notification to EU President Donald Tusk on March 29, which will trigger Article 50. Officials in Brussels have already outlined a divorce bill for Britain of between 55 and 60 billion euros.

Brexit: What lies ahead? What happens after that? The EU is expected to give a first response later this week. A summit of EU leaders on April 29 is then to lay down guidelines for the Brexit talks, which are expected to start in May or June. The hardest part of the negotiations will be determining the status of more than a million Britons living in other parts of the EU and of some 3 million EU citizens in Britain, and working out trade details.

Brexit: What lies ahead? The Great Repeal Bill By autumn this year, the UK government is expected to introduce legislation to leave the EU and put all existing EU laws into British law - the Great Repeal Bill. The possible move will annul the 1972 European Communities Act (ECA), which gives EU law instant effect in the UK, and give parliament the power to absorb parts of EU legislation into UK law, scrapping elements it does not want to keep.

Brexit: What lies ahead? How long will the process last? EU leaders have said they want to conclude the talks within 18 months to allow the terms of the exit to be ratified by UK and the European Parliaments as well as the EU states. If no agreement is reached in two years and no extension is agreed, the UK automatically leaves the EU and all existing agreements.

Brexit: What lies ahead? What if the UK changes its mind? The fifth paragraph of Article 50 raises the possibility of a state wanting to rejoin the EU after having left it. This would be considered under Article 49. Author: Aasim Saleem



Citizens' rights, budget and security

Also outlined in Tusk's eight-page document was a priority to settle the legal uncertainties surrounding expatriates in the UK and on the continent. The draft plan calls for all rights acquired before the cutoff on the day Brexit takes effect to be retained.

The fate of citizens living in each other's country will be a "matter of priority," Tusk said. That sentiment was echoed by Maltese Prime Minister Joseph Muscat, who country currently holds the European Council's rotating presidency. He said both sides "must make sure citizens are not used as bargaining chips by any side,"

Tusk also said the UK must honor all commitments and liabilities it has taken as member state. "It is only fair towards all those people, communities, farmers, scientists and so on, whom we, all the 28, promised and owe this money," the former Polish prime minister said.

On security, Tusk ruled out any suggestions that May implied in her departure letter that the UK sharing security information depended on it getting a good Brexit deal.

"I know Theresa May well enough and I know her approach to this issue," he told reporters in the Maltese captial. "This is why I rule out this kind of interpretation ... that security cooperation is used as a bargaining chip. It must be a misunderstanding."

Following Tusk's speech, British Foreign Minister Boris Johnson reaffirmed the UK's promise that its commitment to Europe's defense and security was "unconditional" and "not some bargaining chip."

Speaking ahead of a NATO meeting in Brussels, Johnson said there was "lots of good will" between the UK and its EU partners since May triggered Article 50 earlier this week.

"We really are moving forward now. There's a lot of good will, willingness to achieve what the Prime Minister has said she wants to achieve," he said.

Transitional agreement

However, Tusk's guidelines dictated that if the UK were to remain part of the EU single market as part of any transitional arrangement, Britain would have to continue adhering to European rules, with "existing Union regulatory, budgetary, supervisory and enforcement instruments and structures to apply."

That could provoke backlash from Westminster as these were among the main reasons voters in the UK chose to leave the bloc.

The guidelines rule out any partial membership of the single market.

Schäuble: All sides should strive for an agreement that deals the least damage.

Schäuble urges hard EU stance in Brexit negotiations

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble warned the UK on Friday that it will not be able to enjoy the same rights it once did as an EU member without agreeing to the necessary obligations.

"We want to keep the British close, but there are no rights without responsibilities," Germany's finance minister told the "Neue Osnabrüker Zeitung."

The Brexit negotiations will be "a learning process, also, and especially, for the British," Schäuble said. "They have their large financial center in London, but they won't keep their usual access to the EU market if they don't accept the rules of the European bloc."

Minimizing the pain on a tight timetable

Schäuble said the key outcome of the Brexit negotiations would be for both sides to minimize the damage of the UK's withdrawal.

"On the one hand, the details will be complicated and multifaceted, while on the other, all the negotiations need to be concluded within the next two years," he said. "The clock is ticking."

dm/sms (dpa, AFP)