Theresa May confronted Donald Tusk today over his claim that Brexiteers will have a 'special place in Hell' during a brutal round of talks in Brussels.
The PM said she raised the 'unhelpful' barb with the EU council president as they met for crisis discussions in the Belgian capital this afternoon.
The clash was revealed as Mrs May emerged from a fraught series of discussions, admitting that it would not be 'easy' to secure legally-binding changes to the Irish border backstop. But she insisted she would 'deliver Brexit and deliver it on time'.
Earlier, Jean-Claude Juncker again insisted that the Withdrawal Agreement will not be reopened - saying the bloc had already made 'significant concessions'.
In a small win for Mrs May, the EU commission chief agreed that formal negotiations can be reopened - but only on the future relationship and not the binding Withdrawal Agreement treaty.
But they effectively kicked the can down the road once again by saying they would meet before the end of the month to 'take stock' of what progress had been made.
Speculation is mounting that the premier is targeting an EU summit in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, on February 24 to seal tweaks to her package. It would only then be put to a Commons vote - raising the stakes as the UK is due to depart the bloc at the end of March.
After holding his own meeting with Mrs May this afternoon, European Parliament president Antonio Tajani warned of an 'economic and humanitarian catastrophe' if the negotiations failed.
Theresa May said she confronted Donald Tusk (pictured together in Brussels today) about his 'unhelpful' barb about Brexiteers having a 'special place in Hell'
The talks with Mr Tusk (pictured) appear to have been extremely tense as the Brexit pressure begins to fray tempers
Earlier, the PM and the EU commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker - usually known for his exuberant touchy-feely style - stood grim-faced next to each other before disappearing for private talks
The body language between Mrs May and Mr Juncker was distinctly frosty as they met before the crucial talks today
Mrs May was careful not to smile as she greeted Mr Juncker at the European commission headquarters in Brussels today
The two leaders went on from the grim-faced photo opportunity to have a 'robust' discussion - often seen as diplomatic code for a blazing row
Mrs May said she raised with Mr Tusk 'the language that he used yesterday, which was not helpful and caused widespread dismay in the United Kingdom'.
'I've had a good series of meetings today. We've had robust discussions but they've been constructive,' she said.
'What I've set out is our clear position that we must secure legally binding changes to the Withdrawal Agreement to deal with the concerns that Parliament has over the backstop, and that changes to the backstop - together with the other work we're doing on workers' rights and other issues - will deliver a stable majority in Parliament.
'That's what I will continue to push for. It's not going to be easy but crucially President Juncker and I have agreed that talks will now start to find a way through this, to find a way to get this over the line and to deliver on the concerns that Parliament has, so we get a majority in Parliament.'
Mrs May's trip this morning was immediately thrown into turmoil as a demonstrator with a placard saying 'don't crash out' jumped in front of her convoy.
After he was wrestled out of the way, Mrs May continued inside - posing grim-faced next to Mr Juncker before they went for their private discussions.
Meanwhile, Jeremy Corbyn has heaped pressure on her by offering to back a deal in return for dropping her red line on joining a permanent customs union.
The move is designed to appeal to Tory Remainers who favour a Norway-style arrangement with the bloc - although it has also infuriated Labour MPs who want a second referendum.
In a joint statement issued after their talks, Mrs May and Mr Juncker said he had 'underlined that the EU27 will not reopen the Withdrawal Agreement, which represents a carefully balanced compromise between the European Union and the UK, in which both sides have made significant concessions to arrive at a deal'.
Mr Juncker apparently 'expressed his openness to add wording to the Political Declaration' that would make it 'more ambitious in terms of content and speed when it comes to the future relationship between the European Union and the UK'.
'The discussion was robust but constructive,' the statement said.
'Despite the challenges, the two leaders agreed that their teams should hold talks as to whether a way through can be found that would gain the broadest possible support in the UK Parliament and respect the guidelines agreed by the European Council.
'The Prime Minister and the President will meet again before the end of February to take stock of these discussions.'
The clashes make clear that Mrs May had a mountain to climb to get changes to the Brexit deal painstakingly thrashed out over two years - and resoundingly rejected by the Commons last month.
Some Brexiteers have been demanding she gets the backstop - an insurance policy to ensure there is no hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic - dropped altogether.
But Mrs May has made clear she is only seeking 'legally binding' changes to guarantee the UK will not be 'trapped' in the arrangements indefinitely.
Downing Street said that Mrs May is 'open to different ways' of achieving her objectives on the backstop.
One of the PM's key messages for EU leaders was that the Commons has now made it clear it could support the Withdrawal Agreement as long as concerns about the backstop are addressed.
Mrs May also stressed that Labour leader Mr Corbyn also has concerns about the backstop, so it is not just an issue for the Tories and their DUP allies.
After talks with Mrs May, Mr Tajani said: 'We are open to being more ambitious on our future relations, including looking at the Irish situation again if the UK's red lines change.'
Following the talks with Mr Juncker, Mrs May went straight into another meeting with European Parliament president Antonio Tajani (pictured)
A demonstrator with a placard saying 'don't crash out' jumped in front of the PM's convoy as it pulled up at the EU's HQ for a meeting with Jean-Claude Juncker
He added in Twitter: 'We are weeks from an economic and human catastrophe.'
The EU parliament's Brexit co-ordinator Guy Verhofstadt, who was in the same meeting, said Mrs May 'assured us that there will be a backstop'.
He added: 'There is no question to remove the backstop because that is absolutely necessary for securing and safeguarding the Good Friday Agreement, safeguarding the internal market and safeguarding also the peace process.'
The Labour leader made his move in a letter to the PM setting out his revised conditions for backing a deal - including a permanent customs union and close alignment to the single market.
Tory former minister Nick Boles welcomed the overture as a 'big step to a cross-party compromise' based on an enhanced Norway model.
But Mr Corbyn's terms - which crucially drop his previous call for her to secure the 'exact same benefits' as current membership - enraged Labour Remainers who accused him of 'enabling' Brexit.
Fresh splits also emerged in Mr Corbyn's frontbench team as shadow Brexit minister Matthew Pennycook said the party 'must move to support a public vote' unless Mrs May accepts the conditions 'in full'.
Theresa May left Downing Street early this morning heading to the Belgian capital for crunch talks to try to wring more concessions on the Irish border backstop
In Mr Corbyn's letter to the PM, which follows their Brexit meeting last week, he insists that Labour's Brexit demands must be enshrined in the Political Declaration setting out future relations with the EU.
Mr Corbyn said that securing in law the demands is the only way of achieving Labour support and uniting the country.
He called for a 'permanent and comprehensive UK-wide customs union' that gives the UK a say over future trade deals, and close alignment with the single market, underpinned by 'shared institutions'.
Mr Corbyn also urged 'dynamic alignment on rights and protections' in order that UK standards do not fall behind those of the EU, as well as commitments on participation in EU agencies and funding programmes, and 'unambiguous agreements on the detail of future security arrangements, including access to the European Arrest Warrant and vital shared databases'.
The letter drew fury from some pro-EU Labour figures who said it went against Labour's Brexit stance.
Mr Tusk used a press conference with Irish PM Leo Varadkar yesterday to cause a storm with a jibe at Brexiteers.
He said there was a 'special place in Hell' for those who campaigned for Leave but did not have a 'safe' plan for handling the Irish border issue.
Mr Tusk then rubbed salt in the wound by chuckling when Mr Varadkar was caught on mic whispering that the British would give him 'trouble' over the attack.
The remarks were immediately dismissed as 'arrogant' and 'inflammatory' by Eurosceptics, who demanded an apology.
Mrs May's effective deputy David Lidington said this morning that Mr Tusk's comment 'wasn't the most brilliant diplomacy in the world'.
He told BBC Radio 4's Today: 'I think Mr Tusk was venting yesterday, but I don't think that will detract from what I expect to be a courteous and sensible grown-up discussion between the different EU leaders and the Prime Minister.'
Among the prominent EU figures Mrs May is set to meet is European Parliament Brexit coordinator Guy Verhofstadt who joined in with Mr Tusk's Brexit 'Hell' analogy.
Mr Verhofstadt tweeted that Lucifer would not welcome such Brexiteers because 'after what they did to Britain they would even manage to divide Hell'.
Meanwhile, the Daily Telegraph reported that Mrs May is seeking to delay another Commons 'meaningful vote' on the Government's Brexit stance until the end of February - just a month before the UK is scheduled to quit the EU on March 29.
Mrs May will kick off a series of difficult meetings by holding talks with EU commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker - who yesterday showed Leo Varadkar (left) a Thank You card he had received from an Irish family
Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn (pictured last night) is trying to outflank Mrs May by making a pitch to join forces with Tory Remainers
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News Photo Brexit deal rejected by EU as Juncker holds talks with May
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