Donald Tusk urges British PM to start Brexit negotiations

The President of the European Council urged the British Prime Minister on Thursday to begin Brexit negotiations as soon as possible.

Donald Tusk, who met with Theresa May ahead of the upcoming European Union Summit on Sept. 16, spoke of the need for an immediate start to official Brexit discussions.

“I’m aware that it is not easy but I still hope you will be ready to start the process as soon as possible,” Tusk said, adding that the decision to move the process forward was now in “the UK’s court.”

On his official Twitter account, Tusk said that a quick initiation of negotiations was in “everyone’s interest,” and maintained that the EU’s goal was to establish the closest possible relations with the UK.

Since the June 23 referendum result that saw British voters opt to leave the 28 member bloc, European officials have called on May to invoke Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, which would trigger the two year negotiation process.

May, in turn said she wanted a “smooth” exit from the EU, but warned that the UK would not trigger the article this year.

In the upcoming EU Summit in the Slovakian capital Bratislava, European leaders are expected to discuss the EU’s postBrexit future.

The UK is not scheduled to attend.

Tusk told May that the Summit members would not discuss future relations with the seceding islandnation and reiterated that, for this to be possible, the UK would need to submit its official request to exit in the form of Article 50.

Today was the first bilateral meeting between May and Tusk since the British PM took office after the Brexit triumph led David Cameron to resign.

Tusk arrived in the UK from the Republic of Ireland, as part of a series of conversations with European leaders before the Summit.