Down to the Wire as EU Leaders Discuss Coronavirus Recovery Fund

BRUSSELS, KOMPAS.com — A €1.85 trillion or around $2.1 trillion EU budget hangs in the balance as European Union (EU) leaders admitted that an agreement is still far from reach.

EU leaders held a budget summit to discuss a virus recovery fund.

Each government leaders were seated apart in line with Covid-19 health protocols to keep all attendees safe at their summit center.

Read also: Indonesia's Trade Talks Must Go On amid Pandemic: Trade Ministry

"The differences are still very, very big and so I can't predict whether we will achieve a result this time," said German Chancellor Angela Merkel upon arriving at the Europa summit site.

"So I expect very, very difficult negotiations," Merkel continued.

The 27 EU leaders are facing unprecedented obstacles resulting from the coronavirus pandemic.

The EU bloc is experiencing the worst recession in history and member-states are at odds over who should pay the most.

Read also: Ranks of the Poor Swell by 1.63M in Indonesia Due in Part to Coronavirus Pandemic

Then there is the debate over which nations ought to receive the most aid to revive their battered national economies.

Having arrived on Thursday, French President Emmanual Macron took the lead with early negotiations where he used the pre-summit house to meet with Dutch Prime Minister (PM) Mark Rutte.

The Dutch PM is considered one of the bloc’s biggest obstacles in reaching a deal at the two-day meeting due to his position as a stringent budget hardliner.

"I am not optimistic, but you never know. Nobody wants another meeting," said Rutte.
Macron underscored the importance of the challenge.

"The coming hours will be absolutely decisive," he said. "It is our project Europe that is at stake," stated Macron.

What is slated as a two-day summit could go even longer, if necessary, to bridge the differences between leaders.