BRUSSELS — Smaller countries — particularly in Eastern Europe — have sent hundreds of thousands of citizens to work in Britain and may seek a gentler tone, in part to spare their expatriates.
“Punishment is not going to be the best way to consolidate forces,” said Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius in an interview. He said E.U. leaders were already consulting about next steps. The Baltic nation has 3 million citizens at home and 200,000 in Britain, a measure of what is at stake, not just for Britain but for the European nations it is leaving behind.
For an Eastern Europe that is staring across its borders at mounting numbers of Russian troops, the British decision will also have security implications, empowering the Kremlin and weakening European resolve against Russian actions in Ukraine.
“Frankly speaking, of course the Kremlin will celebrate,” Linkevicius said. “It’s a big day. Any step weakening the unity of the European Union, unfortunately, this could be considered a victory.”
In Russia, pro-Kremlin politicians mocked Europe for resisting what they said was the euroskeptic will of its populations.
“After the referendums in the Netherlands and Britain, the elites leading the countries of the E.U. will be against holding them: the opinion of the people is dangerous for their political goals,” the head of the foreign affairs committee of Russia’s lower house of parliament, Alexey Pushkov, wrote on Twitter.
