EU chief warns UK there is no strength in 'splendid isolation'

• We want to have the best possible relationship with the United Kingdom, but it will never be as good as membership.
• The European Union's three top officials gathered Friday to promise a new dawn for their bloc and warn Britain.

BRUSSELS: The European Union's three top officials gathered Friday to promise a new dawn for their bloc and warn Britain that it would lose the benefits of close ties after Brexit.

"We want to have the best possible relationship with the United Kingdom, but it will never be as good as membership," EU commission president Ursula von der Leyen said.

"Our union has gained political impetus and has become a global economic powerhouse. Our experience has taught us that strength does not lie in splendid isolation, but in our unique union," she said.