"Before it comes to hard Brexit, it would be better to hold another round of negotiations than to deal with what hard Brexit means, namely, great damage to both sides," Maas told reporters upon his arrival at the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels.
At the same time, answering a question whether UK exit from the European Union could be postponed to a later date than the elections to the European Parliament in May, Maas said that "the further the deadline is extended, the harder the issue becomes."
Last week, the UK parliament voted in favor of delaying the country’s departure from the European Union and against leaving the bloc with no deal in place. This week, May is expected to bring her withdrawal agreement back to the parliament for a third vote.