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In an unexpected statement at Downing Street, May said she was seeking a vote on June 8, less than halfway through the government's five-year term.

Opposition parties said they would not block the move, sending Westminster into full-throttle election mode.

The European Union brushed off May's announcement, saying it would not affect the negotiations on Britain's departure. But May's decision means that Europe's three most powerful nations -- France, Germany and Britain -- will be convulsed by internal election campaigns as the clock ticks on the two-year deadline to complete Brexit negotiations.

May, who commands only a slim majority in parliament's lower House of Commons, said that a new mandate would strengthen her hand in Brexit talks.

A general election would end the attempts of opposition parties and members of the House of Lords to thwart her Brexit plans, she said. "If we do not hold a general election now, their political game playing will continue," she told reporters at Downing Street.

"At this moment of enormous national significance, there should be unity here in Westminster, but instead there is division. The country is coming together, but Westminster is not," she added. "We need a general election and we need one now."

Her decision is a sharp reversal of policy -- since taking over as Prime Minister, May had repeatedly ruled out an early election. May said she changed her mind on a recent walking holiday with her husband in Wales.

It is also a risky roll of the political dice. A fractious election campaign will reopen wounds barely healed after last year's EU referendum and give voice to those who oppose her strategy of pursuing a clean break from Europe.

May's Conservative Party currently holds 330 of the 650 seats in the House of Commons. She is expected to win an increased number -- opinion polls show support for the opposition Labour Party, led by Jeremy Corbyn, at record low levels.

Corbyn said he would not oppose the call for an election. "I welcome the Prime Minister's decision to give the British people the chance to vote for a government that will put the interests of the majority first," he said.

Under legislation introduced by the coalition government led her predecessor, David Cameron, an early election requires the support of two-thirds of MPs in the House of Commons. May said she would place a motion on Wednesday in the House of Commons calling for a vote on June 8.

A Downing Street spokesman said that May had the full backing of her Cabinet on calling the election and that the Prime Minister had spoken with Queen Elizabeth II on Monday.

May called on voters to throw their support behind her Conservative Party, adding that "every vote for the Conservatives will make me stronger" in Brexit talks.

Corbyn said he welcomed the decision to call for an election, even though his party is fractured over his leadership, widely regarded as lackluster.

Tim Farron, leader of the Liberal Democrats -- which was battered in the 2015 election and now holds just nine seats in the House of Commons -- said the election was Britain's chance to change direction.

The Liberal Democrats oppose Brexit, and Farron said he would push for as strong an association with Europe as possible -- a so-called "soft" Brexit -- including membership of the EU's free-trade zone, the single market.

The party said it had gained 1,000 new members in the hour after May's announcement. Labour also said it had gained 1,000 members Tuesday.

In Scotland, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon is likely to use the campaign to pursue her demand for a fresh independence referendum, after Scotland overwhelmingly voted to stay in the European Union.

"This announcement is one of the most extraordinary U-turns in recent political history, and it shows that Theresa May is once again putting the interests of her party ahead of those of the country," Sturgeon said.

Britain voted in July last year to leave the union after 44 years of membership in a divisive and hotly contested referendum.

The negotiations are expected to be tough and will likely take place over two years, though the more complex aspects of Britain's future relationship with the EU, such as trade, could take even longer.

May has struggled with not only the opposition, but with members within her own Conservative Party, who have been at loggerheads over what kind of Brexit the country should have.

The Prime Minister laid out her vision for Brexit in January and more formally later with a White Paper. But even that basic framework -- which spelled out that Britain would leave the EU's single market -- caused divisions in her party and involved several rounds of deliberations before a coherent plan could be presented.

The European Union appeared unwavered by the announcement. Preben Aaman, a spokesman for the European Council president Donald Tusk, said the EU would continue with its plans to adopt guidelines on April 29 for the Brexit talks.

CNN's Erin Mclaughlin, Hilary McGann and Carol Jordan contributed to this report.

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UK Prime Minister Theresa May to seek early election - CNN

The Guardian

Turkey Vote Could Mean the End of a Courtship to Join the EU New York Times For decades, the European Union dangled the possibility of membership before an eager suitor in Turkey. But it was never a perfect match. Too many Europeans had reservations about having a predominantly Muslim state, with porous and volatile borders ... EU leaders urge Erdoan to show restraint after referendum victoryThe Guardian Turkey referendum: EU urges Ankara to probe illegal vote claimsBBC News Erdogan's referendum on absolute power means the European dream is over for TurkeyThe Independent Fox News -RTE.ie -Voice of America all 3,376 news articles »

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Turkey Vote Could Mean the End of a Courtship to Join the EU - New York Times

Picture: DANIEL LEAL-OLIVAS/AFP/Getty Images

The UK's BrexitDepartmenthas come under fire for Tweeting graphs on trade and economic growth that seem to indicate the benefits of staying in the European Union.

The Department for Exiting the European Union (DExEU) has been mercilessly ridiculed online after posting graphs on the growing trade since the Second World War, presumably in an attempt to assure people Brexit will go well for the UK.

However, more than anything it seems to perfectly underlinethe importance and benefits of the UK's membership in the European Union from 1973 onwards.

People are taking the opportunity to mock the DExEU,as thegraphs seem to explicitlyhighlight just how dependent Britain is and was on trade links and deals with the other European Union states.

The trade graph, tweeted out by the official DExEUaccount, can be seen here.

Almost instantly, an eagle-eyed tweeter pointed out that the illustration seemed to omit a key detail -that detail being the reason for the growth in trade in the 1970's.

The UK actually joined the EECin 1973 where the total trade is on the rise and, if pointing it out wasn't enough,they then offered the following graph to highlight this.

More: These are the best jokes about Brexit

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Department for Brexit mocked after accidentally praising the EU - The indy100

BREST, 19 April (BelTA) The European Union intends to invest over 800,000 in the implementation of pilot initiatives in the area of green economy in Brest Oblast, BelTA learned from Natalya Kozlovskaya, a specialist of the EU/UNDP project for assisting Belarus' transition to green economy, during an awareness-raising event in Brest.

European grants are used to implement three green economy initiatives in Brest Oblast. The largest one is the creation of a facility to convert waste wood into biofuel at premises of the Brest city utilities enterprise. The facility was opened in 2016 and now successfully operates. A mobile plant to chop waste wood has been bought, a plant for sorting the resulting wood chips by fractions as well as a loader with mounted equipment. The project goes on. Work is in progress to buy boiler equipment.

An environmental information center has been established in the wildlife sanctuary Pribuzhskoye Polesie (the village of Leplevka, Brest District) at the expense of 150,000 granted by the European Union. The premises have been repaired and equipped: bicycles, canoes, and tents have been bought. A strategy to develop ecotourism and marketing has been put together. A business plan has been worked out. Ten new tourism products are now being mastered by the local personnel. The initiative has already produced results as the number of visitors the wildlife sanctuary attracts rose by 36% in 2016. The premises are being beautified now. Work on design specifications and estimates to build a photo tower is nearing completion. We intend to sign the contract and erect the photo tower for watching birds and animals soon, noted the project specialist.

The Brest transboundary information center's initiative for organic food production and promotion through reliance on agroecotourism operators and active members of the local community has been successfully implemented. The initiative provides for converting several populated localities in Kamenets District into a herbal tourism destination in addition to starting the production of herbal teas.

The project for assisting Belarus' transition to green economy is financed by the European Union and is being implemented by the United Nations Development Program. It was launched in January 2015. A total of 23 pilot initiatives are being implemented all over the country as part of the project, with 5 million apportioned for them. The project is supposed to end on 31 December 2017.

The first information meeting on principles, mechanisms, and prospects of promoting green economy in the Republic of Belarus took place in Brest on 19 April. The event was organized by the European Union Delegation to Belarus with assistance of the Belarusian Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Ministry and the Brest Oblast administration. There are plans to arrange similar awareness-raising events in Vitebsk, Grodno, Gomel, and Minsk Oblast.

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European Union to invest over 800000 in green economy projects in Brest Oblast - Belarus News (BelTA)

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has finally fulfilled his long-held ambition to expand his powers after Sunday's referendum handed him the reins of his country's governance. But success did not come without a cost.

His victory leaves the nation deeply divided and facing increasing tension with former allies abroad, while international monitors and opposition parties have reported numerous voting irregularities.

An unofficial tally carried by the country's state-run news agency gave Erdogan's "yes" vote a narrow win, with 51.4 percent approving a series of constitutional changes converting Turkey's political system from a parliamentary to a presidential one. Critics argue the reforms will hand extensive power to a man with an increasingly autocratic bent, leaving few checks and balances in place.

Opposition parties called foul, complaining of a series of irregularities. They were particularly outraged by an electoral board decision to accept ballots that did not bear official stamps, as required by Turkish law, and called for the vote to be annulled. International monitors from the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, who also listed numerous irregularities, said the move undermined safeguards against fraud.

The referendum campaign was heavily weighted in favor of the "yes" campaign, with Erdogan drawing on the full powers of the state and government to dominate the airwaves and billboards. The "no" campaign complained of intimidation, detentions and beatings.

In Istanbul, hundreds of "no" supporters demonstrated in the streets on Monday, chanting "thief, murderer, Erdogan" and banging pots and pans.

"We are protesting today because the results announced by the government are not the real ones. Because actually the 'no' we voted won. But the government is announcing it as 'yes' has won," Damla Atalay, a 35-year-old lawyer, said of the voting irregularities.

Erdogan was unfazed by the criticism as he spoke to flag-waving supporters in the Turkish capital, Ankara.

"We have put up a fight against the powerful nations of the world," he said as he arrived at the airport from Istanbul. "The crusader mentality attacked us abroad. ... We did not succumb. As a nation, we stood strong."

In a speech before a massive crowd at his sprawling presidential palace complex, Erdogan insisted Turkey's referendum was "the most democratic election ... ever seen in any Western country" and admonished the OSCE monitors to "know your place."

The increasing polarization of Turkish society has long worried Turkey observers, who note the dangers of deepening societal divisions in a country with a history of political instability.

The referendum was held with a state of emergency still in place, imposed after an attempted coup in July. About 100,000 people have been fired from their jobs in the crackdown that followed on supporters of a U.S.-based Islamic cleric and former Erdogan ally who the president blamed for the attempted putsch. Tens of thousands have been arrested or imprisoned, including lawmakers, judges, journalists and businessmen.

On Monday, the country's Council of Ministers decided to extend the state of emergency, which grants greater powers of detention and arrest to security forces, for a further three months. It had been due to expire April 19. The decision was to be sent to parliament for approval.

"The way (Erdogan) has closed the door on the opposition, there is likely to be increased political unrest," said Howard Eissenstat, associate professor of Middle East history at St. Lawrence University in upstate New York. "Forty-eight percent of the population is being told that their voices don't matter."

There is also the risk of increased international isolation, with Erdogan appealing to patriotic sentiments by casting himself as a champion of a proud Turkish nation that will not be dictated to by foreign powers in general, and the European Union in particular.

Turkey has been an EU candidate for decades, but its accession efforts have been all but moribund for several years.

"They have made us wait at the gates of the European Union for 54 years," Erdogan told his supporters at the presidential palace. "We can conduct a vote of confidence on this as well. Would we? What did England do they did Brexit, right?"

"Either they will hold their promises to Turkey or they'll have to bear the consequences," he added.

Erdogan has also vowed to consider reinstating the death penalty a move that would all but end prospects of EU membership. But, he insisted, other nations' opinions on the issue are irrelevant to him.

"Our concern is not what George or Hans or Helga says. Our concern is what Hatice, Ayse, Fatma, Ahmet, Mehmet, Hasan, Hseyin says," he thundered as the crowd of supporters chanted for the return of capital punishment. "What Allah says. That's why our parliament will make this decision."

Both Germany and France expressed concern about possible election irregularities and called on Erdogan to engage in dialogue with the opposition.

"The narrow result of the vote shows how deeply split the Turkish society is," German Chancellor Angela Merkel and Foreign Minister Sigmar Gabriel said in a joint statement. "This implies a big responsibility for the Turkish government and President Erdogan personally."

The U.S. State Department "encouraged voters and parties on both sides to focus on working together for Turkey's future," while calling on the government to protect rights and freedoms "regardless of their vote on April 16."

The words are unlikely to move Erdogan.

Relations with Germany and the Netherlands have been particularly tense, with Erdogan outraged by decisions in both countries not to allow his government to campaign there to woo the expatriate vote for the referendum.

The referendum approves 18 constitutional amendments to replace Turkey's parliamentary system with a presidential one.

The president will be able to appoint ministers, senior government officials and to hold sway over who sits in Turkey's highest judicial body, as well as to issue decrees and declare states of emergency. They set a limit of two five-year terms for presidents.

The new system takes effect at the next election, currently slated for 2019. Other changes are to be implemented sooner, including scrapping a requirement that the president not be a member of any political party. This would allow Erdogan to rejoin the governing AK Party he co-founded, or to lead it.

"Erdogan dominated the national media. He imposed a very restrictive environment for the 'no' camp," said Fadi Hakura, a Turkey specialist at the London-based Chatham House think tank. "He secured a thin majority of 1 percent. This suggests that Erdogan will become more robust and more challenging to deal with."

Associated Press writers Suzan Fraser in Ankara and Zeynep Bilginsoy and Bram Janssen in Istanbul contributed to this report.

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Outcome of Turkey vote expanding presidential powers likely to further cool EU relations - Chicago Tribune