European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker has accused British politicians such as Boris Johnson of talking “total nonsense” when they accuse him of seeking to create a European superstate.
His comments came as he answered questions at a press conference in Brussels taking place as the Foreign Secretary made a high-profile speech on Brexit in London.
The Commission president was asked to respond to Mr Johnson’s suggestions that he was trying to turn the EU into a federal superstate.
Mr Juncker replied: “Some in the British political society are against the truth, pretending that I am a stupid, stubborn federalist, that I am in favour of a European superstate.
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“I am strictly against a European superstate. We are not the United States of America, we are the European Union, which is a rich body because we have these 27, or 28, nations.
“The European Union cannot be built against the European nations, so this is total nonsense.”