Commentary by Ioana Matei: Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty only sketches a procedure for leaving the EU, but it sets a clear deadline: ”The Treaties shall cease to apply to the State in question from the date of entry into force of the withdrawal agreement or, failing that, two years after the notification.” Therefore, timing is key to the Brexit process. Both parties will try to agree on a deal within the two-year frame. UK’s Prime Minister, Theresa May has said that the UK will be better off with no deal than with a bad one. The EU seemed to want to delay the process – an intimidating move, probably, as the UK is seen as having more to lose if no agreement is reached. But ultimately, both London and Brussels are interested in having a deal, for economic, political and security reasons.
The rest of the EU leaders refused any unofficial negotiations before the UK made the formal notification of its intention to leave the Union. Therefore, between June 23rd 20016 and March 29th 2017, the sides prepared their strategies based on more than one scenario about the position of the other and the outcome of the talks. After Theresa May signed the official letter triggering Article 50, the clock started ticking. The other EU member states have agreed on a common stance for the Brexit negotiations. But official and substantial discussions with the UK will only begin in a few months, after the snap elections in UK, the elections in Germany and in France. Yet, for those involved in the Brexit process the calendar and the few but firm rules set by the Article 50 – as seen in the Euractiv infograph – are paramount.