EU leaders were stuck on Sunday after 3 days of haggling over a plan to revive economies strangled by the COVID-19 pandemic, but the president of their near-record summit suggested they make one last effort on the “impossible mission.” . Charles Michel reminded the 27 leaders of the European Union at a dinner in Brussels that more than 600,000 people had died as a result of coronavirus around the world, and told them they should join in the face of an unprecedented crisis.
Visit our coronavirus site here for the latest updates. “I hope that we succeed in an agreement and that the name Array … is that the EU has completed a most unlikely mission,” he said. “This is my most sincere wishArray … after 3 days of uninterrupted work.” Leaders disagree on how to build a giant stimulus fund designed to help Europe emerge from its innermost recession since World War II, and what situations deserve to be linked to countries from which it would gain advantages. Diplomats said they may leave the summit and return to succeed in a deal next month. On the table, a package of 1.8 trillion euros ($2.06 trillion) for the next long-term budget and the EU stimulus fund. The EUR 750 billion proposed for the stimulus fund would be raised on its behalf all in capital markets through the EU Executive Commission, which would be a historic step towards further integration and then basically channelled to the most affected countries on the Mediterranean coast.
European Central Bank (ECB) President Christine Lagarde said it was better for leaders to agree on an “ambitious” aid programme than to succeed in a quick deal at all costs. “Ideally, the agreement of the leaders deserves to be ambitious in terms of the duration and composition of the packageArray … even if it takes a little longer,” he told Reuters. Lagarde’s comments warned that she was calm about the option of an adverse reaction to money markets if the summit failed, especially as the ECB has a 1 trillion euros more war chest to rebuy public debt. An organization of rich “frugal” states in northern Europe lobbied at the summit for a smaller recovery fund and sought to restrict the distribution of invoices between grants and repayable loans. The tense talks, albeit even shorter than an EU summit in the French city of Nice 20 years ago, highlighted the gap between the north and south of the EU. Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte accused Holland and its allies – Austria, Sweden, Denmark and Finland – of “blackmail.” Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte’s position reflects the political reality of his country, where the electorate deplores the fact that the Netherlands is, proportionately, among the largest net participants in the EU budget. He and his conservative VVD party face a primary challenge from far-right Eurosceptic parties in the March elections. On Sunday night, some other attempt at compromise failed. An agreement offering 400 billion euros in subsidies, compared to the proposed 500 billion, was rejected in the north, which he said was thinking of a maximum of 350 billion euros. There were also differences over a proposed new rule of law mechanism that could freeze the investment of countries that disobey democratic principles. Hungary, subsidized through Poland, threatened to veto the package if its disbursement was conditional on compliance with situations of respect for the rule of law. For some, the summit was a critical moment during nearly 70 years of European integration, and lack of agreement can shake up money markets and raise doubts about the market’s viability.
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