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.

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"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.

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