UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer affirmed that he is not seeking to reverse Brexit as he promoted a potential EU-wide youth mobility deal as part of a broader reset of relations. Starmer, whose Labour Party recently took over from the Conservatives, was warmly received by German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin. The two leaders discussed a new bilateral treaty aimed at mending ties strained by the UK’s exit from the European Union.
Starmer, who is the first Labour leader to take charge in Britain since 2010, emphasized the need to “turn a corner on Brexit” and seize a “once in a generation opportunity to reset” relations with the EU. However, he made it clear that this reset does not mean re-entering the EU’s single market or customs union.
Both leaders have initiated six months of negotiations for what is described as an unprecedented new treaty covering trade, defense, and security. Starmer expressed his desire to conclude the treaty by the end of the year, a tight timeline given the political challenges facing Scholz’s Social Democratic Party.
