LISBON, Oct. 17 (Xinhua) -- Portuguese Prime Minister-designate Antonio Costa on Thursday welcomed the Brexit agreement between the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom, calling it "great", Portuguese News Agency Lusa reported.
Costa expressed his hope that the deal will get approved by the British Parliament.
"Great. I think the top priority we all had was to avoid an exit without agreement, and I only hope that this agreement will be effectively approved, not only in the European Union but also in the British Parliament," Costa told reporters following a meeting with the outgoing President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, in Brussels.
Costa recalled the "historic" agreements reached for the UK's orderly exit from the EU, which were eventually not applied as they were not approved by the UK Parliament.
"I hope that this agreement will be valid not only between us and the British government, but also that the British Parliament can give the approval and we can move on to the most important thing, which is to work on the future relationship with the United Kingdom," he said, quoted by Lusa.
