The Guardian reports: The UK’s unprecedented decision to quit the European Union plunged the 28-state bloc into the deepest crisis in its history, a seismic detonation that could yet topple the entire project.

Results showing that Britons had voted to reject 43 years of EU membership raised immediate questions of whether other member states might follow suit – and whether the political alliance known for 70 years simply as “the west” could remain intact.

Germany’s foreign minister, Frank-Walter Steinmeier, was one of the first to react, calling the result “truly sobering”. “It looks like a sad day for Europe and the United Kingdom.”

Manfred Weber, the chairman of the European People’s Party group of centre right parties in the European parliament, added that the vote “causes major damage to both sides.” He stressed that Britain had crossed a line and that there was no going back.

“Exit negotiations should be concluded within two years at max. There cannot be any special treatment. Leave means leave.” [Continue reading…]