Between now and then, after 43 years of European marriage, the whole body of legislation will therefore have to be disentangled. That entails a whole range of specific and very complex questions: what will be the future legal status of the millions of EU citizens in the UK and the millions of Britons on the continent?

I completely agree with Helmut Kohl. I am not an advocate of the "United States of Europe," nor am I an integration fanatic.

I'm not suffering from withdrawal symptoms. I would say that I have a balanced state of mind.

The outcome of the referendum does not affect those of my officials who have British nationality, since they work for Europe and not for the UK. They have made a major contribution to our common European project, and I will continue to count on their talent and commitment.

But it is the best thing that we have for bringing the countries of Europe around the same table and for forging compromises so that people here can live in peace, freedom and prosperity. In a world which is growing closer together all the time, we can only survive and influence the rules if we join forces. We will miss the presence of the United Kingdom at this table.

In the end, the British didn't vote to leave because of the euro. They're not even members of the currency union. Even the refugee crisis hardly affected the country.

I'm convinced that, in the long term, a monetary union includes a joint debt policy under strict, mutually agreed upon conditions.