A senior German minister has suggested Britain should not be treated harshly in Brexit negotiations.
The country's Foreign Minister, Sigmar Gabriel, warned Germany's own interests would be damaged if the UK was punished too harshly for the vote to leave the EU.
He said: "We should resist the temptation to treat Britain overly harshly, not out of pity, but in our own interest.
"We need Britain, for example, as a partner in security policy, and I'm also convinced that Britain needs us."
The comments by Mr Gabriel, who is also vice chancellor of Germany, will be welcomed by Downing Street.
Other EU leaders, including French President Francois Hollande, have called for stringent conditions to be placed on Britain post-Brexit.
Prime Minister Theresa May has responded to the warnings by vowing that the UK would be willing to quit the EU with no trading deals in place if the terms are overly harsh.
In a major speech last month, the PM said: "No deal for Britain is better than a bad deal for Britain.
"There are some voices calling for a punitive deal that punishes Britain and discourages other countries from taking the same path," she said.
"Britain would not - indeed we could not - accept such an approach."
