WARSAW (Sputnik) — The departure of the United Kingdom is not, in and of itself, the chance to reform the European Union, but a problem to solve instead, Polish Secretary of State for European Affairs Konrad Szymanski said Friday.
"The idea that Brexit is a chance to reform the European Union is exceedingly optimistic and suggests that the membership of the United Kingdom was our main problem, which is, of course, not true," Szymanski said, as quoted by the Polish Press Agency.
According to the Polish politician, the European Union had many internal issues and Brexit was also a problem to solve rather than a chance at reform.
"Our strategic target is to create something that would replace the membership [of the United Kingdom]," the minister for European affairs said.
Szymanski added that the EU countries should continue aiming for a single market, but expressed skepticism toward French President-elect Emmanuel Macron's proposal of a common finance minister for all of the Eurozone.
The United Kingdom is expected to leave the European Union in spring 2019.
