Merkel: UK cannot pick and choose in Brexit negotiations

BERLIN (AA) – The U.K. will not be able to cherry-pick privileges without accepting obligations after its decision to leave the European Union, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Tuesday.

Addressing lawmakers on Europe’s future following the Brexit, Merkel expressed determination to further strengthen the EU with the remaining 27 member states, and said the EU would also try to develop very close ties with the U.K.

She underlined that the U.K. would not be able to benefit from the previous privileges of membership after its exit.

“A country who wants to leave the family, cannot expect that its privileges will continue without previous obligations,” Merkel said.

She also emphasized that the U.K.’s access to the EU’s internal market in future depends on London’s approval of free movement of goods, services and people between the U.K. and the European economic area.

“If one country wants to have free access to EU’s internal market, then in return it must accept the European basic freedoms and other rules and obligations. That is also relevant for Great Britain,” she stressed.

Former London Mayor Boris Johnson, who campaigned for the Brexit, claimed recently that the U.K. could stay in the European single market, while at the same time limit freedom of movement of workers from the EU member states.

Johnson said the U.K. could demand such measures during its negotiations with the EU after the Brexit.

But Merkel has signaled that the EU would not accept such a privilege for the U.K.

“One can get free access to EU’s internal market, if it accepts the four basic freedoms. These are the free movement of people, goods, services and capital,” she said.

After the U.K. vote to end the EU membership, some suggested that the country could keep its close association with the bloc by entering the European economic area.

Currently non-EU member states Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway enjoy close economic ties with the bloc, as members of the European economic area.

Meanwhile, Merkel repeated on Tuesday that the EU member states would not enter into any formal or informal talks with the U.K. on future ties, until London officially starts the exit process.

“There can be no negotiations or preparatory until an application for leave, according to Article 50,” she said.

According to Article 50 of the EU charter, the U.K.’s exit negotiations could only begin when the British government officially demands it.

While the leaders of EU institutions have demanded that exit talks begin as soon as possible to avoid uncertainty, the British government has signaled that it would only start negotiations in the fall.

British Minister David Cameron had announced after the referendum that he would leave office by the time of his party’s conference in October.

However, according to British media, the ruling Conservative Party said a new prime minister could be named by early September.

U.K. citizens voted to leave the EU in a historic referendum last Thursday, where almost 52 percent of voters rejected their country's 43-year EU membership.