Referendum in Britain carries risk of exit from EU

BEIJING/LONDON - With Brussels' endorsement for "special status" in hand, British Prime Minister David Cameron announced Saturday that his country would hold a referendum on June 23 to decide where to stay or leave the European Union (EU).

Cameron said that his government's position was to recommend that Britain remain in the EU. However, uncertainties remain over whether the British people will vote in favor.

EU AGREEMENT AND UK REFERENDUM

The decision to hold a referendum on Britain's EU membership has to be formalized by the British Parliament, but it is widely expected to be adopted since Cameron's Conservative Party holds the majority.

Cameron said he believed that "Britain will be safer, stronger and better off in a reformed European Union."

The British leader's announcement came after he clinched a deal with other EU country leaders on Friday, which gives a "special status" for Britain in the EU in areas ranging from benefit cuts for migrants to opt-out for closer union.

Donald Tusk, president of the European Council, said after the two-day "make-or-break" summit that leaders have achieved a legally binding and irreversible deal to strengthen Britain's "special status" in the EU, adding the settlement has addressed all of Cameron's concerns without compromising fundamental EU values.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel also said that the accord was a "fair compromise," adding: "I don't think that we gave too much to Great Britain."

French President Francois Hollande agreed, saying that the deal contained "no exceptions to the rules" of the EU.

London has demanded EU reform in economic governance, competitiveness, sovereignty and social benefits, and free movement, as precondition for keeping the country inside the bloc.