German Chancellor Angela Merkel said leaders had their eyes on the future for a safe Europe on Saturday (March 25) as they marked the 60th anniversary of the EU's founding in Rome by signing a formal declaration of unity

Merkel said leaders wanted to respond to people's concerns, about the economy, welfare, migration and defence with "a protective Europe" that offered assurances on their wellbeing.

Four days before Prime Minister Theresa May, absent from the ceremony in the Italian capital, delivers an unprecedented blow to the bloc's growth by filing Britain's formal exit papers, her fellow leaders hailed 60 years of peace and prosperity and pledged to deepen a unity frayed by regional and global crises.

But days of wrangling about the wording of a 1,000-word Rome Declaration, May's impending Brexit confirmation and tens of thousands of protesters gathering beyond the tight police cordon around the Campidoglio palace offered a more sober reminder of the challenges of holding the 27 nations to a common course.