DHAKA: A group of Central European European Union members known as the Visegrad Four could veto any Brexit deal that would limit people’s right to work in the United Kingdom.

Slovakian Prime Minister Robert Fico made the remarks on Saturday (September 17), BBC reports.

Hungary, Poland, the Czech Republic and Slovakia would be uncompromising in negotiations, according to Fico.

Him comments came after day of EU’s first major meeting without the UK.

After the summit’s end on Friday Fico also said he and other Central European leaders whose citizens make up much of the EU migrant population in Britain would not let those people become ‘second class citizens’.

“V4 [Visegrad group] countries will be uncompromising,” he said adding “Unless we feel a guarantee that these people are equal, we will veto any agreement between the EU and Britain.”

However, a Slovak foreign ministry source told the BBC Fico had been referring only to those EU citizens living in the UK at the time of the referendum.

The Czech ambassador to the UK, Libor Secka, pointed out this was not an ‘official statement of the Visegrad countries' common position on their approach to Brexit negotiations.

All the EU leaders have insisted there will be no formal Brexit talks until Britain triggers the two-year divorce process and says what it wants.

European Council President Donald Tusk, said the British Prime Minister Theresa May had recently told him that might be in January or February 2017.

The Bratislava summit was intended as a discussion about the best way forward, following Britain's vote to leave the bloc.

BDST: 1005 HRS, SEP 18, 2016
NR/BD