Europe, UK seek closer ties a decade after Brexit

MUNICH: Ten years after the referendum that led to Brexit, Britain and the European Union must close ranks in an increasingly unstable world, their leaders said on Saturday.

EU chief Ursula von der Leyen told the Munich Security Conference that Europe and Britain need to to cooperate more closely on "security, on economy.. on defending our democracies".

"Europe and in particular the UK should come closer together .. 10 years on from Brexit our futures are as bound as ever," she told the Munich Security conference.


British leader Keir Starmer echoed her.

"We are not at a crossroads: The road ahead is straight and it is clear. We must build our hard power, because that is the currency of the age," he said.

"We must be able to deter aggression and, yes, if necessary, we must be ready to fight," he said, calling for a building of "a shared industrial base across Europe which can turbocharge our defence production" and "multiply our strengths".

On Friday NATO chief Mark Rutte said that "a strong Europe in a strong NATO means that the transatlantic bond will be stronger than ever" and French President Emmanuel Macron said that "this is the right time for a strong Europe," that would be "building its own architecture of security".