UK sherpa out in the cold as EU Leave journey starts

A British flag flutters in the air next to the flags of other European countries at Parque Europa (Europe Park) in Torrejon de Ardoz, outside Madrid, Spain, June 25, 2016. REUTERS/Susana Vera - RTX2I52J

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Negotiators from 27 European Union states met in Brussels on Sunday to discuss Brexit at the first such meeting after Britons voted to leave the bloc, and a senior official said London's envoy was not invited.

Britons voted by 52 to 48 percent to leave the European Union, an unprecedented blow to Europe's post-war order, leaving politicians in EU capitals and Brussels pondering how to handle what they expect to be a long and painful divorce.