Posted on 03/28/2020 4:29:13 AM PDT by Oldeconomybuyer
Rome (AFP) - Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte warned Saturday that the European Union could lose its purpose if it fails to come up with a strong response to the coronavirus threat.
Conte aired his grievances after the 27 EU leaders could not agree on an action plan during an argumentative six-hour video conference Thursday and gave their finance ministers two more weeks to forge a policy that could please Italy and Spain.
The two countries hardest-hit by the pandemic blocked Thursday's statement because it did not go far enough.
The crux of the argument is about the extent to which the EU -- facing what Italy views as an existential threat -- should abandon its policy of keeping within tight budget constraints.
The bloc has already untied its purse strings in ways not seen since the 2008-2009 global financial crisis.
Conte argues that this is not enough.
Rome and Madrid want the EU to start issuing "corona bonds" -- a form of common debt that governments sell on markets to raise money and address individual economic needs.
More spendthrift nations such as Germany and the Netherlands are balking at the idea of joint debt.
Conte said he and German Chancellor Angela Merkel had "not just a disagreement but a hard a frank confrontation" Thursday about how to proceed.
"If Europe does not rise to this unprecedented challenge, the whole European structure loses its raison d'etre (reason for existing) to the people," Conte told Saturday's edition of the Il Sole 24 Ore financial newspaper.
(Excerpt) Read more at france24.com ...
Italy’s demanding a bigger bailout.
Note to the UK’s Remoaners: Still unhappy about losing...?
One for all and all for one. The socialist puppet heads follow their orders when given. The EU is the globalists experiment of the new world order. Each have failed because they are a small part of a bigger problem and they have puppets put in place that follow orders, Their governing body, the corrupt UN has failed, the corrupt WHO has failed and they look to china as their savior, the very one who cause this all to happen
-——the 27 EU leaders-——
Government by committee........... fail
Selling shared bonds is not a good long term strategy for the EU given that plenty of member states like Greece and Ireland already have a precarious level of debt. I’m guessing China would be one of the main buyers of these bonds along with globalists like Soros. The EU and many of it’s major politicians are already in Soros pocket though.
The EU should contact the home countries of all the migrants for economic support, medical supplies, breakthrough cures, etc.
E.U. always fails.
28 squabbling self-interests ...
yup, that’s the EU
these idiots are self-destructing right on schedule
Damn ... that right there is funny. Almost as funny as "Diversity is our strength".
spendthrift means the opposite of what the author means in the cases of Germany and The Netherlands.
Companies not merit-based were notorious for being disasters.
The EU is not a merit-based organization. It's goal is the accumulation and exercise of power (over its members) and, accordingly, promotion through the ranks is a function of power.
The people running the EU are experts at power. They are not efficient and effective problem solvers unless the problem is how to accumulate more power
Ergo, it isn't hard to understand that when a complicated problem arises that requires REAL managerial/leadership know-how, problem solving abilites, and creativity, the EU is completely lost.
Excellent comment.
and that’s a bad thing ???
Don’t they have some spare climate change loot hanging out for no particularly good reason?
It is possible that they are a heretofore unconsidered powderkeg of this pandemic.
Will be worth keeping an eye on the ghettos in the UK, France, Germany, Belgium, et al. That may be where the next big stories arise.
Even mosques in major cities like London may be reluctant to temporarily shut down during the "social distancing" period. If so, they will be hot-spots of disease.
FWIW, I just did a little digging and it appears that the East London Mosque and Finsbury Park Mosque are both closed due to the virus. Am guessing that other big London mosques are doing the same.
Obviously I need another cup-o-Joe.;-)
Data updated as of March 27.
Good.
European Union strictures hamstrung their economy for decades. What goes around comes around and the strictures socialism places on one group to benefit another eventually reaches a breaking point.
Anything which accelerates the fall is a good thing.
“We screwed the pooch - listen to us roar.”
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