BRUSSELS -- European Union leaders and Britain agreed today to an extension that would allow the United Kingdom to delay its EU departure date until Halloween.
Leaders of the 27 remaining EU member states met for more than six hours before agreeing after midnight to postpone the exit until Oct. 31.
European Council President Donald Tusk presented the offer to Prime Minister Theresa May, who had asked for a delay only until June 30.
Tusk said in a tweet that the British leader had agreed to the longer "flexible" extension, which means Britain can leave before October if it ratifies a withdrawal deal with the EU.
Just two days before Britain was due to leave the EU, its leaders spent a long dinner meeting wrangling over whether to save Britain from a precipitous and potentially calamitous exit.
May pleaded with them at an emergency summit to delay Britain's exit, due Friday, for a couple of more months while U.K. lawmakers work toward a withdrawal deal.
Some were sympathetic, but French President Emmanuel Macron struck a warning note.
"Nothing is decided," Macron said as he arrived at the summit, insisting on "clarity" from May about what Britain wants.
"What's indispensable is that nothing should compromise the European project in the months to come," he said.
May believed that a June 30 deadline is enough time for Britain's Parliament to ratify a deal and pass the legislation needed for a smooth exit.
But British lawmakers have rejected her deal three times, and attempts to forge a compromise with her political opponents have yet to bear fruit.
May spoke to the 27 EU leaders for just over an hour, before they met for dinner without her to decide Britain's fate.
Many leaders said they were inclined to grant a delay, though Macron had reservations after hearing May speak. An official in the French president's office said the British leader hadn't offered "sufficient guarantees" to justify a long extension.
Macron is concerned that letting Britain stay too long would distract the EU from other issues -- notably next month's European Parliament elections.
"The no-deal situation is a real option," said the official, who was not authorized to be publicly named according to presidential policy. "Putting in danger the functioning of Europe is not preferable to a no-deal."
Others suggested a longer delay would likely be needed, given the depth of Britain's political disarray.
May signaled she would accept a longer extension, as long as it contained a get-out-early clause should Britain end its impasse.
She added that she was hopeful it could be as soon as May 22 -- a key date since that would avoid the need for Britain to participate in elections for the European Parliament.
Several months have passed since May and the EU struck a deal laying out the terms of Britain's departure and the outline of future relations. All that was needed was ratification by the British and European parliaments.
But U.K. lawmakers rejected it -- three times. As Britain's departure date of March 29 approached with no resolution in sight, the EU gave Britain until Friday to approve a withdrawal plan, change course and seek a further delay, or crash out of the EU with no deal.
Earlier Wednesday, several leaders said they would require assurances of good behavior in return for another delay.
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said the EU leaders' decision would hinge on "what her plan is now to get that withdrawal agreement through Parliament, and how we can get guarantees that in the meantime the United Kingdom will stay as a loyal partner."
Information for this article was contributed by Jill Lawless, Angela Charlton, Danica Kirka and Sylvie Corbet of The Associated Press.
A Section on 04/11/2019