Time for playing games now over: German FM on Brexit

Germany's Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said there was not much time left to find a solution for Britain's departure from the European Union and "the time for playing games is now over." He told broadcaster Deutschlandfunk that after the vote in British parliament on Tuesday there needed to be new talks between Britain and the EU, adding that in the end the issue of a backstop solution for the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland needed to be discussed.

"We want to avoid a customs border under all circumstances" he said. Asked about the possibility of postponing the scheduled date for Britain's exit from the bloc, he said that, if such a request reaches the EU, the bloc would discuss it constructively.  

(With inputs from agencies.)