European countries await UK’s letter asking for Brexit delay

Until now, the 27 countries of the European Union have said that they need a “credible justification” for a delay on the Article 50 process – the EU’s legal framework for a country to leave the bloc. Without a good reason to extend this process, the 27 countries may struggle to give more time to the U.K.

“We need something new, because if it is an extension to remain in the same deadlock that we are – how do we get out of this deadlock? This is a question for the British authorities,” Nathalie Loiseau, minister for European Affairs of France said in Brussels Tuesday.

The chances of a no-deal exit start to rise if the EU countries don’t find a strong reason to extend Brexit.

“It can very well happen, it is not what we want to happen,” Loiseau told CNBC when asked about how real is this scenario.

“It is a choice to be made by the United Kingdom, they have said no to a no-deal and no to a good deal, they have to change their mind in one of these options,” she said.

An internal EU memo seen by CNBC suggested that Theresa May will tell the other leaders that a decision on the extension will be the most important moment since the Greek bailout program.