Any Delay in Brexit Negotiations With UK Impossible - EU Parliament President

European Parliament President Antonio Tajani said that the European Union expects to finish the Brexit negotiations before the European elections in 2019.

BRUSSELS (Sputnik) — The European Union will never agree to a delay to Brexit talks with the United Kingdom, which are expected to conclude in 2019, European Parliament President Antonio Tajani said Sunday.

"We can not give any more time for negotiations. We are going to finish them before the European elections in 2019," Tajani said in an interview with La Vanguardia newspaper.

According to Tajani, unless London grants the three million Europeans living in the United Kingdom the same rights as UK citizens have, the European Parliament will vote against the Brexit agreement.

The head of the parliament added that he considers the achievement of an agreement before the end of 2017 to be a priority for Brussels.

The issue of EU citizens's rights in the United Kingdom after Brexit is expected to be among the main points at the second round of Brexit talks, which the parties plan to hold on July 17 in Brussels. In general, Tajani is optimistic about the results of the upcoming negotiations on Brexit.

On March 29, the United Kingdom officially launched the process of the country's withdrawal from the European Union. According to article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty on withdrawal from the European Union, the United Kingdom must leave the bloc before March 29, 2019. Prime Minister Theresa May passed Brexit legislation through parliament before triggering article 50, with the bill making no mention of EU citizens' rights.