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EU project at stake if recovery fund not agreed soon, Gentiloni says – Metro US

EU project at stake if recovery fund not agreed soon, Gentiloni says

News conference on public finances in EU states at EU
News conference on public finances in EU states at EU Commission headquarters in Brussels

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – The European Union is at a crossroads and risks falling apart if governments do not quickly agree on a new fund to sustain the bloc’s economic recovery from the coronavirus crisis, EU economics commissioner Paolo Gentiloni said on Thursday.

“We are really at a crossroads. Either we are able to have a strong common response, but we are not there yet, or the entire project is at stake,” Gentiloni said, calling for the establishment in autumn of a recovery fund that would mitigate economic divergences among member states.

EU states have agreed that a joint response is needed but are struggling to find common ground on the fiscal support that could be provided through this new tool.

(Reporting by Francesco Guarascio; Editing by Toby Chopra)