The European Union has agreed a landmark 750 billion euro ($860 billion) stimulus package to rescue its economies hard-hit by the coronavirus pandemic in a bid to lift the bloc out of its deepest recession since World War II.
European Council President Charles Michel, who chaired the summit, hailed the agreement as a “pivotal moment,” while French President Emmanuel Macron, who pushed for the package, welcomed the result as “historic” for Europe.
The deal will allow the European Commission to raise the funds on capital markets on behalf of the member states to distribute nearly 400 million euros in grants to the hardest-hit nations, and the rest of the funds in low-interest loans to remaining member states.
The agreement comes after days of fraught negotiations in Brussels between member states considered “frugal,” including the Netherlands, Denmark, Austria and Finland, all of which opposed extending grants to the hardest-hit nations such as Italy and Spain.
But the group of frugal nations eventually came around to a figure of 390 billion euros in grants, instead of 500 billion, and were offered larger rebates from the next EU budget in return.
The agreement follows days of rocky talks and table-thumping between leaders, which watchers warned could have plunged the world’s biggest trading bloc into discord had a package not been agreed upon, following years of fracture and Brexit.
The coronavirus pandemic has pushed the EU into is biggest recession since World War II, at one time the center of the pandemic with countries like Italy, Spain and France some of the hardest-hit within the bloc. The U.K., with more than 45,000 deaths, is the worst-hit country in Europe, but is not involved in the deal following its departure from the EU in January.
The deal will next have to pass through the European Parliament and be ratified by all 27 member states.
Disagreements between member states spread out over 90 hours, making it the second-longest EU summit in the bloc’s history and just 20 minutes shy of a summit in Nice, France, 20 years ago.
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I am a breaking news reporter for Forbes in London, covering Europe and the U.S. Previously I was a news reporter for HuffPost UK, the Press Association and a night
I am a breaking news reporter for Forbes in London, covering Europe and the U.S. Previously I was a news reporter for HuffPost UK, the Press Association and a night reporter at the Guardian. I studied Social Anthropology at the London School of Economics, where I was a writer and editor for one of the university’s global affairs magazines, the London Globalist. That led me to Goldsmiths, University of London, where I completed my M.A. in Journalism. Got a story? Get in touch at [email protected], or follow me on Twitter @bissieness. I look forward to hearing from you.