Germany wants to bolster EU shaken by pandemic: Merkel

Reuters reports that the coronavirus pandemic has exposed the weakness of the European Union and Germany will use its presidency of the bloc to promote solidarity and economic prosperity among its 27 member states, Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Thursday.

In a speech to parliament, Merkel said the most immediate challenge facing the bloc reeling from more than 100,000 deaths linked to COVID-19 and facing its worst recession since World War Two was to agree on a multi-year budget and a recovery fund.

“The pandemic has revealed how fragile the European project still is,” said Merkel, lamenting the “rather national and not European” initial response to the pandemic by EU governments, including her own. “Cohesion and solidarity have never been more important than today.”

Germany takes over the EU presidency for six months on July 1 and Merkel said member states have high expectations of the bloc’s largest economy, which is also its paymaster.

EU leaders will debate the European Commission’s 750 billion euro ($842.93 billion) recovery plan for the first time on Friday, together with a 1.1 trillion euro proposal for the next EU budget for 2021-2027. The plan will need the approval of all member states.

Merkel said she expects an agreement on the spending plans at a physical meeting of EU leaders later this year, playing down the chances of a breakthrough at a videoconference summit on Friday.