PM Johnson to deliver Brexit message to Macron, Merkel

LONDON (Reuters) - British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will deliver his message on Brexit to French President Emmanuel Macron and German Chancellor Angela Merkel during visits this week, a government spokeswoman said on Monday.

"Ahead of the G7 the prime minister believes it is important to speak to the leaders of France and Germany to deliver the message that he has been setting out through the phonecalls he's had with leaders and face to face," the spokeswoman said.

"It is likely they will discuss other issues: foreign policy issues, security issues and so on, but clearly Brexit will form a key part of both bilateral meetings."

Johnson's spokeswoman repeated that there can be no formal negotiation with the European Union until the backstop, designed to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland, has been dropped.

(Reporting by William James; writing by Costas Pitas; editing by Alistair Smout)