Theresa May puts on the charm with Angela Merkel ahead of one-on-one meeting with the German Chancellor in Berlin
Prime Minister joins EU leaders to say farewell to outgoing President Barack Obama on his last Europe tour
THERESA MAY is all smiles with Angela Merkel ahead of a one-on-one meeting with German Chancellor in Berlin later today.
The Prime Minister is joining other EU leaders today for talks with US President Barack Obama on his farewell visit to Europe.
Talks will not focus on Brexit today but Mrs May is likely to bring up the topic with her EU counterparts, and during a private meeting with Angela Merkel.
The meeting could get tense after German finance minister Wolfgang Schäuble said overnight that Britain could have to pay into the EU budget for more than a decade after we leave the EU.
A Downing Street spokesperson said that "what happens after we have left the EU is a matter for the negotiation process".
Mrs Merkel said earlier this month that Britain should make its negotiating position clear by the time Article 50 is triggered in March, and the Prime Minister is also under pressure at home to reveal more of her strategy.
She told a meeting of Germany’s BDA employers association: “Were we to make an exception for the free movement of people with Britain, this would mean we would endanger principles of the whole internal market in the European Union, because everyone else will then want these exceptions.
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"We will have to discuss further with the (European) Commission when this freedom of movement applies from,” she added.
Talks are likely to include leaders' worries over the election of Donald Trump last week, after he repeatedly criticised NATO and said that climate change wasn't real.
Friday's meeting between Mr Obama and the leaders of Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Spain is the first of its format since Trump's election.
A Downing Street spokesperson today insisted that Nato was a "cornerstone of European defence" and the UK was "committed" to ensuring all members met the target of spending 2% on defence.
Mrs May will also discuss updates of military action against Islamic State in Syria and Iraq as offensives continue from a US-led coalition.
She will call on the group to keep the threat of tough sanctions against Kremlin generals on the table to punish them for war crimes in Syria.
Mr Obama was having a tough time letting go yesterday as he told Mrs Merkel she was an "outstanding partner" and he wished he could "lighten her load" over the coming years.
The German chancellor said "the parting is hard for me" as the two leaders held a joint press conference.
In a snub to the Prime Minister, Mr Obama described Mrs Merkel earlier this week as his "closest partner" as Brits worried about the future of the special relationship between the UK and the US.
But earlier today Mrs May had a brief conversation with the outgoing President about the future of relations between the two countries, sources said.
