美国有线新闻 CNN 英国首相梅准备携脱欧协议第四次闯关（在线收听）

英国首相梅准备携脱欧协议第四次闯关

It's been almost two years and two months since the United Kingdom officially started the process of breaking off from the European Union. It was supposed to be done within two years, but there have been hang-ups and extensions along the way. And it's still not clear what's going to happen regarding the Brexit, the British exit from the E.U.

Here's why it's complicated. No member of the European Union has left the group since it was established in 1993. But in June of 2016, Britons voted 51.9 percent to 48.1 percent to leave the union. Their disagreements with the E.U. over economics, immigration and laws were some reasons why.

Before Britain can officially leave, though, both its government and the European Union want to agree on the terms — the new rules concerning trade, immigration and borders between Britain and the E.U. Separating without an agreement would create a lot of uncertainty across Europe and possibly impact international economies, at least for a while.

A deal has been reached between British Prime Minister Theresa May and the leaders of the European Union, but it has not gotten the approval of Britain's parliament. Lawmakers have held three votes on it so far, and the deal has failed to pass. Some lawmakers want significant changes to the agreement before they support it. Others want Britain to hold a new vote on Brexit altogether. Prime Minister May plans to seek a fourth parliamentary vote on the latest version of the deal in early June, but no one knows yet if it will pass.

On the E.U. side, European Commission President Jean Claude Juncker says he's a little fed up because there have been multiple extensions to the Brexit and people are losing patients.

So far, though, there hasn't been any solution that enough officials agree on for Britain to leave the union.