Amid the COVID-19 pandemic and the toll it has taken on global economies, EU leaders have been in an acrimonious debate for weeks over how best to support struggling member-states, with France, Italy and Spain more inclined to resort to grants, while Germany and the Netherlands preferred economic recovery to be stimulated by loans.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron have joined forces to propose the European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union (EU), set up a recovery fund worth €500bn ($545bn; £448bn) to extend help to EU economies struggling with the crippling impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, reports DW.
The agreement that the 27 EU members would jointly borrow on financial markets to offer grants rather than loans to hardest-hit sectors and regions in the European Union was reached during virtual talks held on Monday, 18 May.
The suggested sum would be in addition to the €1 trillion EU budget for 2021-2027.
Source: Agencies
