VIENNA, Jan. 16 (Xinhua) -- Austrian Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has ruled out further negotiations on Brexit following the collapse of the deal in the British parliament on Tuesday.
Kurz told the Austria Press Agency there will "certainly be no renegotiation," and that the ball is now in London's court.
He said he hopes for more clarity from Britain with regard to its future relationship with the European Union (EU), and that it must know what its goal is.
The EU still offers an outstretched hand to avoid a hard Brexit, and also to assure a close future relationship between the two, he said.
Nonetheless Austria is prepared for a hard Brexit should that be the outcome, Kurz said.
The initial deal reached was "very fair and balanced," he said.
Austria's EU Minister Gernot Bluemel also confirmed the no to renegotiation.
"Opening the contract, a renegotiation, that will not happen," Bluemel told public broadcaster ORF.
The EU has maintained unity during the Brexit negotiations. "We should not risk that now," he said.
"If the British do not accept that, it will lead to a hard Brexit, which is not the preferred option, but we have prepared for that," said Bluemel.
