Leo Varadkar, the prime minister of the Republic of Ireland, has voiced his opposition to Britain’s exit from the European Union, commonly known as Brexit.
We want to build “bridges not borders”, Varadkar said in Belfast, Northern Ireland at Queen’s University on Friday.
Varadkar reiterated a preference for Britain to remain part of the EU, and failing that, for it to stay in the European single market to maintain the current free trade arrangements between the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom.
“Brexit seriously risks driving a wedge between Northern Ireland and Ireland, between Britain and Ireland,” Varadkar warned in his first visit to the British-ruled territory on the island of Ireland since taking office in June.
“And I cannot imagine who benefits from that,” he added.
“That’s our vision for the future: building bridges, not borders,” he said.
He said the alternative could mean a return of “hard” customs posts, “a…