It should concentrate the minds of everyone in Europe that Britain is to launch its withdrawal from the EU just days after the union’s 27 other members marked the 60th anniversary of its founding. Brexit is just one symptom of the profound troubles that have beset the EU in recent times. Yet for all its shortcomings, the EU has been indispensable to peace and prosperity in Europe. As a benevolent if imperfect experiment in shared sovereignty among nation-states, the EU has no parallel in the world. Britain needs the EU to stay strong after Brexit.
英国将在欧盟(EU)其他27个成员国庆祝欧盟成立60周年庆典几天后启动退欧程序,这应引起欧洲所有人的关注。英国退欧只是最近欧盟所陷入的严重问题的一个表现。尽管存在缺陷,但欧盟一直是欧洲和平与繁荣不可或缺的因素。作为各国共享主权的一项善意但不完美的试验,欧盟在世界上堪称独一无二。英国要想在退欧后保持强大需要欧盟。