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TEHRAN, November 25 - European Union leaders meet Sunday to approve a historic Brexit deal, which British Prime Minister Theresa May said would deliver her country a "brighter future".
TEHRAN, Young Journalists Club (YJC) - At a special summit in Brussels that was almost derailed by a row over Gibraltar, the other 27 leaders will gather to sign off the agreement before May joins them to mark the milestone.
Forged during 17 months of tough negotiations, the deal covers financial matters, citizens' rights, Northern Ireland and a transition phase, and sets out hopes for future security and trade ties.
But it is not the final stage, as the House of Commons in London must still approve the deal before Brexit day on March 29, 2019 -- and many MPs have warned they will not back it.
Until the agreement is approved, all sides are still planning for the potentially disastrous possibility that Britain ends its four-decade EU membership with no new arrangements in place.
EU Council President Donald Tusk, who has always said he would prefer Britain not to leave, said on the eve of the summit that "no-one will have reasons to be happy" when Brexit happens.
But he said terms had been agreed that would "reduce the risks and losses", and recommended that EU leaders sign off on the deal.
Eurosceptics in May's Conservative party and their Northern Irish allies warn they will not support the agreement when MPs vote as expected next month.
But in an open "letter to the nation" on Sunday, May said it delivered on the 2016 referendum vote to leave, and was a "deal for a brighter future".
Britain remains deeply divided over the decision, but the prime minister said that finally leaving could be "a moment of renewal and reconciliation".
"To do that we need to get on with Brexit now by getting behind this deal," she said.
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