Key reactions to trigger

PARIS: Here are key reactions and commentary on Britain’s triggering Wednesday of two years of negotiations to leave the European Union:

— ‘Already miss you’ — “We already miss you ... There is no reason to pretend this is a happy day” — EU President Donald Tusk.

— ‘Let’s stay friends’ — “The sentence often used in private divorces, ‘let’s stay friends’, rings true in this case. Britain remains our neighbour, like the European Union is for Britain. We need each other.” — German Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel.

— ‘Act as one’ — “In these negotiations the Union will act as one and preserve its interests” — the EU’s other 27 member states.

— ‘New chapter’ — “Today isn’t a good day. #Brexit marks a new chapter in our Union’s history, but we’re ready, we’ll move on, hoping UK remains (a) close partner” — European Parliament chief Antonio Tajani.

— ‘Building new walls’ — “The politicians who fought for #Brexit were allowed to grow up in a free Europe. Today they are building new walls ... History will show that Brexit is a tremendous mistake. It will create a lot of damage for both sides.” — Manfred Weber, head of European People’s Party (EPP), biggest group in the European Parliament.

— ‘Joyous day’ — “This is a joyous day indeed. Today we formally begin the process of reclaiming the right to decide our own laws, how our taxes are spent, whom we trade with and who gets to come into this country” — eurosceptic British newspaper the

— ‘ Door schtill open’ — “Dear Brits, ze door is schtill open” — German daily in accented English.

— ‘Point of no return’ — “The impossible dream is happening. Today we pass the point of no return,” — former UKIP leader and prominent “Leave” campaigner Nigel Farage, who tweeted a picture of the letter being handed over with the phrase “you’ve been triggered.”

The move will “force Europe to go forward, undoubtedly with different speeds”, he said during a visit to Indonesia, the final stop on the last major international tour of his term in office.

French President Francois Hollande said Brexit will be “economically painful” for Britain, after London formally launched the process to quit the European Union.

“It will end with a trade agreement between Great Britain and Europe, we hope that it’s the best trade agreement possible, for Europe and for Great Britain,” Hollande said.

While Brexit is “sentimentally painful” for the Europeans, it would be “economically painful” for the British, he added.

Germany will strive in Brexit negotiations to make sure there is as little disruption as possible to the lives of European Union citizens living in Britain, Chancellor Angela Merkel said in Berlin on Wednesday.

Stressing that she hoped Britain and the EU would remain close partners, Merkel told members of her conservative party that the prospect of Brexit made many people in Europe worried about their own personal future.

“This is the case especially for the many Germans and European citizens in Britain. Therefore, the German government will work intensively to make sure the effect on the everyday lives of those people is as small as possible,” she said.— AFP