WorldPosted at: Sep 30 2026 7:50PM


Macron, Sánchez welcome UK return to EU as Burnham floats Brexit reversal

Madrid, Sep 30(UNI) French President Emmanuel Macron and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez on Wednesday welcomed the prospect of Britain rejoining the European Union, days after new British Prime Minister Andy Burnham raised the possibility of returning to the bloc.
Speaking at a joint news conference in Madrid, where Sánchez is hosting Macron on a two-day visit, Macron said Britain would be welcomed if it chose to reverse Brexit.
"Welcome back," Macron said in English before adding, "If the British want to come back ... I think that is very good news, both for his country and for Europeans."
Calling a return "a good decision", Macron said Burnham was right to "have that boldness"."In any case, we will be there to try to make things work," he added.
Sánchez also expressed support for a possible British return, describing Brexit as a "huge loss of the British people and the European project as a whole".Spain would welcome Britain back "with open arms" if London decided to rejoin the bloc, he said.
Macron also addressed the large influx of migrants into Ceuta, the Spanish territory in North Africa, in late July. He said Spain had not organised the crossings but was instead a "victim of an attack", arguing that the situation required solidarity from other European countries.
"I am surprised that many Europeans did not show this solidarity, even though they had benefited from it when they had faced the same events," Macron said.
He also called for closer European security cooperation, saying, "We must continue improving our coordination among European countries and within the European Union, particularly within the Schengen area, so that we can collectively improve."
Sánchez, according to Spanish broadcaster Cadena Ser, apologised to Macron over the Spanish Senate's refusal to approve a friendship treaty with France.
He also warned against growing effort to "make Europeans renounce our democratic values and social cohesion" and turn Europe into a bloc "divided, at odds with each other, and dependent on foreign interests."
Sánchez called for greater European unity and solidarity, while stressing that Spain and France shared positions on the conflicts in the Middle East, including Iran and Gaza, as well as on Ukraine.
He reaffirmed their commitment to international law and the multilateral order "faced with the law of the strongest and the allure of authoritarianism."
Macron has criticized the idea of creating deportation centers, or “return hubs,” for irregular migrants outside the European Union, saying France would oppose efforts for the bloc to fund such facilities.
The proposed return hubs, located outside the EU’s borders, are a key part of the bloc’s efforts to tighten migration and accelerate the return of people who have no legal right to remain. The policy has faced criticism from human rights groups.“France does not support that policy,” Macron said.
“I’m not sure that’s the Europe we want. I’m not sure those are the fundamental principles on which our Europe was built. And I don’t believe, for that matter, that it’s effective. The proof is that, so far, I haven’t seen anyone make it work.”
Macron said France supports stricter rules aimed at increasing the return of people without the right to stay to their countries of origin, but stressed that France would not establish or build return hubs.UNI AAB
Tags: #Macron# Sánchez welcome UK return to EU as Burnham floats Brexit reversal
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