BRUSSELS  - The 27 European Union nations handling Britain's exit from the bloc set a tough negotiating mandate for the talks, the EU's chief negotiator said Monday, stressing that the discussions would be tension-filled.
The talks will quickly center on the tens of billions in costs London would be expected to pay for the divorce.
EU ministers built on the strong stance which was reached unanimously at an EU summit last month, and further tightened the legal wording in the mandate for Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier.
The 27 ministers said in a statement Britain "must honor its share of all the obligations undertaken while being a member" and also "fully cover the specific costs related to the withdrawal, such as the relocation of EU agencies currently based in the U.K."
The cost estimates for Britain have gone as high a 100 billion euros ($111.8 billion) for the withdrawal, a sum which British government officials have ridiculed, with British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson going as far as to venture that the EU should pay Britain instead for its departure.
Monday's explicit language on the payments Britain should make even included "a schedule of payments" from London.