Brexit dominates front pages

As the UK prepares to deliver a letter singed by UK Prime Minister Theresa May to Brussels, formally notifying the EU that it is triggering Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, newspapers all over the continent focus on the historic step.

The Guardian takes a sentimental stance on today’s events, saying that May “will call on the British people to unite as she triggers article 50”, referring to Holyrood’s vote to give Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, the power to negotiate the terms of a second independence referendum.

Similarly, The Times says Theresa May will “today appeal to Britons to unite before embarking on the ‘momentous journey’ out of the European Union”. It refers to the triggering of Article 50 as “the biggest political shake-up since the Second World War.”

The Financial Times, on the other hand, focuses on the negation talks between May and the EU, which are required to be completed within two years. The newspaper says that May signed the letter “amid new signals that the Prime Minister is willing to compromise to prevent the UK’s 44-year relationship with Europe ending in acrimonious divorce.”

Scottish newspaper The Herald focuses on the Scottish independence referendum, which Scottish parliament has endorsed. First minister Nicola Sturgeon said the referendum was to give voters a choice between Brexit in the UK and independence and a closer relationship with Europe, after Scotland voted to stay in the EU in June referendum. The newspaper reports, however, that “the UK Government has throw new obstacles in her path.”

Across the channel, French newspaper Le Figaro reports that UK ambassador to Brussels Tim Barrow will deliver the letter to European Council president Donald Tusk at around midday while Theresa May informs her cabinet that the Brexit procedures have been launched.

Liberation, another French newspaper, paints two possible scenarios for post-Brexit Britain.

Spanish language newspaper El Pais turns back the clock, referring to the Leave campaigns slogan to point out that the kingdom has “never been less cohesive.” It reports that “the United Kingdom, one of the most powerful political unions in modern history, could break as a result of the tensions unleashed by its departure from the European Union."