According to the Italian public television Rai, the government of Giuseppe Conte has rejected the draft text of the conclusions of the European Summit.
The cause was the negative stance of some Member States to the need to adopt a Eurobonds in response to the coronavirus crisis.
“Within ten days the EU must find a solution”, Conte said.
Italian media also report that Conte’s move was in collaboration with the Spanish government and Pedro Sanchez, who also expected more concrete decisions from the Summit.
It should be noted that due to the objections of Germany and the Netherlands there is no reference to Eurobonds in the draft conclusions presented to European leaders and the direct reference to the ESM that existed in the previous version has been removed.
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The Italian Prime Minister did not hesitate to raise the tone by indirectly pointing to the Netherlands and Germany.
“If you are thinking of helping us with established protection mechanisms that have been created in the past, then just drop it… We will continue alone. We don’t need you. Italy has presented its credentials on public finances. We closed in 2019 with a deficit to GDP ratio of 1.6 instead of 2.2, as originally planned. The aftermath of the coronavirus period should be tackled not in the coming months but by tomorrow morning”, the Italian Prime Minister, whose country has been at the heart of the coronavirus pandemic, declared.
