BERLIN (Sputnik) — On Thursday, a nationwide referendum was held in the United Kingdom in which 51.9 percent of the voters said they were in favor of the country withdrawing from the bloc.
"We have to think about what do these negotiations mean to us, 27 EU member counties. We are still one of the major economies in the world… The European Council has to define unified policy," Merkel told reporters at a joint press conference with French President Francois Hollande and Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.
The chancellor added that the decision made by Britons was respected, but they needed to think about consequences.