(VOVworld) – EU leaders have been divided over whether the EU should be broadened or narrowed once the UK leaves the bloc following the Brexit.

(Photo: Getty Images)

Those who want to boost the EU’s integration include the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, and the leaders of France and the southern European countries. They all hoped for more policies to improve the growth rate and reduce the power of the financial institutions.

Meanwhile, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the leaders of its allies and eastern European countries want member states to seriously address the bloc’s issues. Brexit reflects the disappointment of those Europeans who want to regain power for their countries. Merkel considered Britain a key economic ally in dealing with the EU’s cumbersome financial policies and called for the EU to give Britain more time. But Juncker, French President Francois Holland, and Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi have repeatedly urged Britain to leave the EU quickly.