ANKARA/LONDON
U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson does not want a deal on Brexit, nor an extension for negotiations, the president of the European Council said on Tuesday, warning that Europe's future was at stake.
"@BorisJohnson, what’s at stake is not winning some stupid blame game. At stake is the future of Europe and the UK as well as the security and interests of our people. You don’t want a deal, you don’t want an extension, you don’t want to revoke, quo vadis?" Donald Tusk said on Twitter.
Tusk's outburst came amid reports that German Chancellor Angela Merkel told the British premier that a deal was now "overwhelmingly unlikely" in a phone call.
Johnson took over the top government office after predecessor Theresa May was forced out by the Conservative Party in July. He has insisted that a deal without the problematic "backstop" clause was possible.
The U.K. government last week pitched its new withdrawal deal, but the new proposal failed to impress EU officials.
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said the proposal "falls short."
The British government on Tuesday published its 'No-Deal Readiness Report.'
A deal needs to be reached and approved in next week's European Council summit. Otherwise, the U.K. will leave the bloc without a deal.
Johnson has insisted that a deal is within reach, that U.K. had "compromised" and that the EU should do the same in an attempt to leave the issue to EU partners.
He repeatedly stated that he would take the U.K. out of the EU by Oct. 31 with or without a deal.
* Ahmet Gurhan Kartal contributed to this story from London
