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Coronavirus: Merz accuses Italy of misusing the crisis - and is reaping horror: "The EU can shatter on it"

2020-04-20T04:40:33.656Z


There was a tough struggle in the EU over the introduction of “corona bonds”. Now Friedrich Merz reports with serious accusations against Italy - and is horrified.


There was a tough struggle in the EU over the introduction of “corona bonds”. Now Friedrich Merz reports with serious accusations against Italy - and is horrified.

  • Corona crisis * : The German government rejects Eurobonds * to use this means to help the wavering Italy .
  • An anti- Germany mood is said to be spreading among the EU partner during the coronavirus pandemic * .
  • The head of the euro bailout speaks of a great need for aid from European pots.

Update of April 19, 8:40 pm: Candidate for CDU chancellor Friedrich Merz has spoken out with sharp criticism of Italy's Eurobonds demands . He made serious allegations against the government of Giuseppe Conte on Twitter on Sunday  - and now sees himself facing violent headwinds. In line with this, Merz explained that the country, hard hit by the Corona crisis, wanted to use the pandemic for its own purposes. 

Italy has so far not wanted to accept aid provided by the EU , Merz wrote in a tweet. "That shows that Italy has no acute need for financing, but tries to find unlimited financing options for its state budget in the slipstream of Corona."

Italy does not yet want to accept aid provided by the EU. This shows that Italy has no acute need for financing, but tries to find unlimited refinancing options for its national budget in the slipstream of Corona. (tm) @faznet

- Friedrich Merz (@_FriedrichMerz) April 19, 2020

Shocked reactions were not long in coming. "This is as malicious as it is wrong," complained the Green European politician Reinhard Bütikofer . "The EU can shatter on such lies," he warned. The former mayor of Bremen, Carsten Sieling (SPD), used the stylistic device of sarcasm. “You don't even need a beer mat for such razor-sharp knowledge. Postage stamp is enough, ”he decided. 

The general excitement surrounding the posting even brought the hashtag "#Merz" into the Twitter trends on Sunday. With Armin Laschet, a competitor in the race for the CDU chair also received criticism for his policy in the Corona crisis on Sunday.

Corona bonds: After a tough struggle in the EU - demand for further aid billions is loud

Update from April 19, 10:45 am:  In the corona crisis , the head of the ESM euro rescue fund , Klaus Regling, expects a need of at least another 500 billion euros in aid from European pots. This requires thinking about new crisis instruments, but also using existing options such as the EU budget .

The EU countries have recently put together a first aid package of more than 500 billion euros to workers, companies and lurching states in the corona crisis after tough negotiations. Among other things, it provides for precautionary credit lines of up to EUR 240 billion under the ESM (European Stability Mechanism). 

Regling warned that the creation of new aid instruments such as corona bonds  ( see below ) would take time and money would not be paid out before the coming year. The ESM chief believes it is possible that the European Central Bank (ECB) could decide to buy government bonds on a large scale. However, the decision rests with the ECB.

Corona bonds? European Parliament brings completely new demand - summit on Thursday

Update of April 17:  The European Parliament demands so-called recovery bonds in the fight against the corona crisis - European bonds that are secured by the EU budget. This is intended to finance future investments, but not to communitize existing debts. A majority of MPs voted in favor of this demand on Friday. It is another variant in the ongoing dispute over corona bonds and funding post-crisis reconstruction.

The proposal is similar to the ideas of the EU Commission, with the help of guarantees from the EU budget, to raise money on the capital market via bonds, thereby supporting investments by the EU states. Details of the model are still being worked on. It should be a topic at the video summit of EU leaders next Thursday . President Ursula von der Leyen has already said that a trillion-dollar Marshall Plan, or more than a thousand billion euros, will be needed to recover after the crisis.

The common European debt raising under the keyword corona bonds or euro bonds is still extremely controversial. Highly indebted countries and countries particularly affected by the pandemic, such as Italy and Spain, want them. The Netherlands, Germany and other countries mainly reject joint liability.

Corona bonds: Italian mayor appeals to Merkel

7:54 p.m .: The mayor of the Italian town of Stazzema , in which there was a Nazi massacre in 1944, and the local peace park  there appealed to Chancellor Angela Merkel to campaign more strongly for Europe in the Corona crisis . "The next victim of Covid-19 will be Europe if there is no more solidarity between the states," says a letter from Italy. Mayor Maurizio Verona told dpa on the phone on Saturday: "Many Germans are very close to our place, and our story goes to their hearts."

But at the moment he was seriously concerned that economic thinking would take over in the dispute over EU aid. "Our letter to Chancellor Merkel should be an invitation not to forget the social aspects of the EU," said the social democratic politician.

The letter criticizes the resistance of Berlin and other countries to Italy's common European bonds, called corona bonds, which are strongly demanded by Italy . It says about the development in the EU: "We have become Italians and Germans again and no longer Europeans." The letter is in "Representation of the National Peace Park and the victims' association of Sant'Anna di Stazzema, to which the survivors and relatives of the victims belong ”.

On August 12, 1944, SS soldiers killed more than 500 people in the Tuscan mountain village of Sant'Anna di Stazzema during World War II, including many women, children and the elderly.

With more than 19,000 deaths, Italy has been particularly hard hit by Covid 19 disease .

After a clear announcement by Merkel - Juncker contradicts: "Will prevail in the end"

Update of April 11, 3:22 pm : Germany and Austria are against  Corona Bonds  - but former EU Commission chief Jean-Claude Juncker believes: "The idea of ​​Corona Bonds will ultimately prevail." He told the world. A lot of preparatory work is required to create such a new financial instrument, he continued in an interview with the newspaper. 

Juncker attributed the fact that the negotiations between EU member states on financial aid in the Corona crisis were so tough that the heads of state and government cannot meet in person at the moment. Consulting by video conference is not ideal. The EU countries must "continue to work seriously towards corona bonds," Juncker said. This must also be made clear to Italy and Spain , countries particularly affected by the coronavirus pandemic

You can find out about international economic developments in our news ticker.

After a clear announcement from Merkel - EU agrees on rescue package against corona crisis

Update at 12.03: France's Economics and Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire has praised the agreement of the EU countries to an aid package in the face of the Corona economic crisis. "It is the most important and fastest economic plan the European Union has ever adopted in its history," said Le Maire after the meeting. France and the German-French duo had played an important role in the negotiation and had shown themselves united from the start.

The entire European construction was at stake, Le Maire told Europe 1 radio station . The risk was great that “the EU would explode”.

Corona crisis: EU agrees on aid package - "Further steps must follow"

Update of April 10, 2020, 10:35 a.m .: The SPD welcomes the European 500 billion euro package against the corona crisis , but sees it only as a first step. "Measured against the measures that the German Bundestag decided for our country alone, further steps have to be taken for Italy and Spain," party leader Norbert Walter-Borjans told the Spark newspapers. A permanently functioning community needed "more own financial sovereignty and jointly guaranteed government bonds on clearly defined conditions".

Walter-Borjans nevertheless called the agreement a "ray of hope for the entire continent". The combination of three measures is "now what quickly and effectively helps the most battered members".

You can find out about international economic developments in our news ticker.

Corona crisis: EU agrees on rescue package

Update at 10:14 p.m .: The EU finance ministers have agreed to help in the Corona crisis of half a trillion euros . France's finance minister Bruno Le Maire spoke on Thursday evening on Twitter of an “excellent agreement” to deal with the immediate economic consequences of the pandemic. 

A spokesman for Eurogroup leader Mario Centeno wrote that a video conference of the EU finance ministers ended "with clapping".

Corona bonds: movement in the dispute over grants

Update at 9:29 pm: There has been movement in the EU's deliberations on financial aid against the economic consequences of the corona crisis.

Germany, France and Spain had agreed with the Netherlands and Italy on a draft text for the talks between the EU finance ministers

, it said from EU circles on Thursday evening. According to a spokesman for Eurogroup boss Mario Centeno, these should start their consultations in a large group in a video conference at 9:30 p.m. after a delay of several hours.

In the first half of the week, finance ministers had initially not been able to agree on a planned Corona aid program of half a trillion euros in order to tackle the immediate economic consequences of the crisis. The reason was the demand from the Netherlands to link aid loans from the ESM euro rescue fund to strict conditions. Italy had strictly rejected this.

Overall, the crisis package consists of three parts: In addition to loan commitments from the Euro Rescue Fund ESM of up to EUR 240 billion, this includes loans from the European Investment Bank for companies of up to EUR 200 billion and another EUR 100 billion to promote short-time work to help layoffs during the crisis prevent.

The ministers also want to pave the way for a post-crisis “recovery program”, which the International Monetary Fund (IMF) believes is the hardest since the Great Depression in the 1930s. Funding for a planned "solidarity fund" will not be decided until later.

Corona bonds required by Italy and other countries are controversial on this issue. Germany, the Netherlands and Finland strictly reject them as a community of debts.

Corona bonds: Union budget decidedly contradicts

Update at 17:02: Union budget politicians have vehemently spoken out against corona bonds. Corona bonds with joint and several liability would amount to a partial disempowerment of the Bundestag and thus damage to the principle of democracy in Germany , according to a paper from the AG Budget of the Union Bundestag faction from Thursday, which is available to the German Press Agency.

The Bundestag has sole budgetary law - this means that it decides on the expenses, income, debts and guarantees that German taxpayers have to bear. Germany, however, would have unlimited liability for other states , the risk of which the members of the Bundestag and thus the voters in Germany would have no influence.

Corona bonds as common European debt instruments are highly controversial: France, Spain and Italy are vehemently calling for them, Germany and the Netherlands are against it.

Corona bonds? Clear announcement from Merkel, which prefers three alternatives

Update at 2:24 p.m .:  Angela Merkel (CDU) has again clearly rejected corona bonds with a joint debt of the EU member states in the fight against the consequences of the current crisis  . According to participants, the Chancellor said in a special meeting of the Union faction via video conference that solidarity should be shown given the test that Europe was facing in the  coronavirus crisis  . However, Angela Merkel was also very open to Germany's financial solidarity - however, there was no "political union" for joint debt through so-called corona bonds.

To solidarity within the EU to show that there are three good tools , Merkel made according to these data in the video conference of the CDU parliamentary group in view of the deliberations of the euro finance ministers clearly to be continued in the afternoon. The Eurogroup then plans to negotiate a rescue package worth around 500 billion euros . It is to consist of three elements: a guarantee fund from the European Investment Bank (EIB) for corporate loans, the short-time worker program “Sure” , which the European Commission is considering , to secure jobs in the crisis, and precautionary credit lines from the ESM bailout fund for particularly affected countries.

Eurobonds: Spanish Prime Minister Sanchéz warns - "EU is in danger"

Update at 11.15 a.m .:  After the Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte , the Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is now urgently warning against the European Union falling apart as a result of the Corona crisis. "The EU is at risk if there is no solidarity ," said the socialist politician on Thursday (April 9) in the parliament in Madrid.

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Chancellor Angela Merkel gives Corona Bonds a clear rejection.

© dpa / Markus Schreiber

Spain and other countries in the Union are calling for joint bonds - so-called corona bonds - to deal with the economic effects of the pandemic. Germany and other countries are against it. The EU countries wanted to try again on Thursday evening to put together a multi-billion dollar rescue package to combat the crisis.

The Madrid “Congreso de los Diputados” debated on Thursday the government's request to extend the alarm condition that had been in force since March 15, including strict exit restrictions, by another two weeks until April 26. With around 150,000 cases of infection and almost 15,000 deaths, Spain is one of the countries most severely affected by the Sars-CoV-2 virus. 

Corona crisis: EU countries are struggling for a joint rescue package

Update of April 9, 2020, 6.50 a.m .:  On Thursday (April 9), in the fight against the corona economic crisis , the EU countries are again trying to put together a multi-billion dollar rescue package for workers, companies and indebted countries. The finance ministers of the 19 euro countries advise together with their colleagues from the other EU countries in order to clear the last hurdles.

The ministers had already negotiated the night from Tuesday to Wednesday for 16 hours without finding a solution. It is about a rescue package worth around 500 billion euros with three elements: a guarantee fund from the European Investment Bank (EIB) for corporate loans, the short-time worker program called "Sure", which the EU Commission is considering, to secure jobs in the crisis, and precautionary measures Credit lines of the ESM euro rescue fund for particularly affected countries.

The fact that the ministers were unable to reach an agreement on Wednesday morning (April 8) after a marathon session had caused disappointment and criticism in the European Parliament. Federal Finance Minister Olaf Scholz was confident that "we will get the appropriate enlightenments before Easter ". A breakthrough would then be a must, France's finance minister Bruno Le Maire said: “Failure is unthinkable.” The Eurogroup must find an ambitious economic answer to the corona virus crisis .

"Write off Europe" - Conte warns of the breakup of the EU in corona crisis

Update at 9:13 pm: In the midst of the Corona crisis , the Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte warned of a breakup of the European Union . “Germany has no advantages if Europe sinks into recession. Our economies are put to the test, ”he said in an interview with the Bild newspaper. And further: "We do not demand that Germany and Holland should pay our debts."

In the EU, the issue of joint debt raising via so-called corona bonds is a key issue. Italy has been particularly hard hit by the corona pandemic, with more than 17,600 deaths . In addition, particularly severe economic effects are feared in the already highly indebted country.

Corona crisis: Conte wants to loosen fiscal rules in the EU

Conte called for a relaxation of the fiscal policy rules in the EU. Otherwise we have to write off Europe and everyone does their thing. A quick ascent is the best for everyone. ”In the end, one should not stand there and say that the operation was successful, but the patient Europe was dead. Germany and Italy had to help each other. “We have to go to battle together. The front facing the enemy must be closed. "

Update, 8.15 a.m .: In the dispute over a multi-billion dollar corona bailout package, the EU finance ministers initially did not present any results, but adjourned to Thursday. This was announced by Eurogroup boss Mario Centeno on Twitter on Wednesday.

After 16h of discussions we came close to a deal but we are not there yet.
I suspended the #Eurogroup & continue tomorrow, thu.
My goal remains: A strong EU safety net against fallout of # covid19 (to shield workers, firms & countries) & commit / to a sizeable recovery plan pic.twitter.com/wLRhcbR9O1

- Mário Centeno (@mariofcenteno) April 8, 2020

Update of April 8, 2020, 6.41 a.m .: In the dispute over the multi -billion euro corona crisis package of the European Union, the finance ministers did not make a breakthrough on Wednesday night. Nothing has yet been agreed and it is still unclear whether a solution will be reached, it was said in the early morning from negotiating circles. 

The negotiations conducted by video conference were repeatedly interrupted during the night to discuss new documents and formulations.

EU before tearing test? Negotiations on corona bonds interrupted - "one-on-one talks" necessary

Update at 20:50: The negotiations of EU finance ministers on aid for financially weaker countries proven to be difficult. A video conference started in the afternoon was interrupted for two hours until 9:00 p.m., according to a spokesman for Eurogroup leader Mario Centeno. According to information from EU circles, one-on-one discussions should be held and a draft for an explanation should be improved.

The ministers agreed "largely" on three short-term crisis measures , it said from negotiating circles. These are aids from the ESM Euro Rescue Fund, loans from the European Investment Bank EIB for companies in financial need and a European short-time work allowance proposed by the EU Commission. However, further discussions are needed on ways to get the European economy back on its feet in the long term.

In particular, Italy, which is hard hit by the Corona crisis and at the same time highly indebted, is demanding joint bonds from  the Member States. In addition to Italy, such euro or corona bonds also wanted Spain, Greece and smaller countries such as Malta or Luxembourg. They would continue to be rejected by Germany and the Netherlands, but also by Austria, Sweden and the Baltic States.

Are the corona bonds coming? The Merkel government receives criticism from its own ranks

Update at 5.44 p.m .: The EU finance ministers are wrestling over ways out of the crisis by video conference. Among other things, via Eurobonds. The federal government from the Union and the SPD now has to accept criticism from its own camp for its tough stance on this issue. 

The long-time President of the Bundestag and today's chairman of the Konrad-Adenauer-Foundation, which is close to the CDU, Norbert Lammert has criticized the German government's resistance to corona bonds. The fact that Germany "categorically refuses a common European bond has long done more political damage than can be expected from economic relief," Lammert told the Süddeutsche Zeitung on Wednesday.

With regard to "the extreme exceptional situation and growing despair in important partner countries," the impression of limited solidarity is just as economically risky as it is hard to bear in humanitarian terms, "criticized the CDU politician. Many objections to Eurobonds are "fundamentally justified" - but it is striking "that there are now prominent voices from politics and business in Germany, who advocate a factual and temporary bond in this situation".

EU before tearing test? Negotiations on corona bonds are ongoing - Scholz makes statement

Update of April 7, 2020, 4:20 pm: In these minutes , the EU finance ministers are negotiating aid in the corona crisis . It is already evident that no easy consultations are to be expected: due to difficult preparations, the start of the video conference had been postponed by 60 minutes to 4 p.m. The EU governments have been arguing for weeks about so-called corona bonds to raise common debts, which are demanded by Italy and other countries, but are strictly rejected by Germany.

Federal finance minister Olaf Scholz (SPD) gave the supporters of the bonds another rejection in advance: He was relying on a package of crisis aid from the ESR , the European Investment Bank and the European Commission , he said before the start of the negotiations. These are three "instruments of solidarity". In addition, the obligation to rebuild together after the crisis was important.

"I very much hope that we can do this today, but of course it's a big task," said Scholz in a video on Twitter. However, the Vice Chancellor made it clear that Germany does not want to make reform programs of the beneficiary states a condition for the ESM credit lines . "It's not about enforcing any economic restructuring programs," he said.

It is about providing help where it is needed now # Solidarity #Europe https://t.co/gtXWUDhKC9

- Olaf Scholz (@OlafScholz) April 7, 2020

Clash because of Eurobonds? Merkel is silent - but EU commissioners put pressure

Update April 6, 2020 19:55:  Also on Monday has Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU), the subject of Corona bonds recessed in its statement to the virus crisis - despite a seemingly clear commitment to solidarity in the EU. But the pressure on Germany is growing in the dispute over common European bonds. 

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Germany and France are divided on Corona bonds.

© dpa / Frederic Scheiber

Before deliberations by the EU finance ministers on Tuesday, it was not only EU commissioners Paolo Gentiloni and Thierry Breton who campaigned for so-called corona bonds . The French government also campaigned again on Monday for a variant of these community bonds, which are to be used specifically to combat the economic consequences of the pandemic. 

Corona bonds: clash between Germany and southern EU countries? Video conference on Tuesday

Finance Minister Olaf Scholz and Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (both SPD) instead advertised on Monday in a joint guest contribution for several European newspapers for other common European instruments: the ESM euro bailout fund, the European Investment Bank EIB and the "Sure" program proposed by the EU Commission, which, like in Germany, is intended to finance short-time work in the Member States. There is a consensus among the finance ministers about the use of these three instruments.

The two German ministers also did not list so-called corona bonds - the Union in particular is against it. Italy, Spain and France and other EU countries, on the other hand, are demanding these joint bonds - because highly indebted countries may be able to receive fresh money from the capital markets at considerably more favorable terms. 

Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has so far been reluctant to debate community bonds. Instead, it relies on the common EU budget for the years 2021 to 2027, which it plans to use for a “Marshall Plan” for Europe. The EU finance ministers are planning a video conference this Tuesday to discuss funds to deal with the financial consequences of the coronavirus crisis.

Because of no to Eurobonds: Italian politician attacks Germany - "The country that gives the orders"

First report of April 3, 2020: Munich - How profound will the changes caused by the coronavirus pandemic be for Europe ?

Politically, some observers fear a devastation within the European Union (EU) due to the devastating economic consequences, especially for Italy in the Corona crisis * - ARD-extra  recently mentioned, for example, a separation between north and south.

There is probably no other point where the disagreements on the question of how to cope economically with the crisis manifest themselves as much as in the yes or no regarding so-called corona or eurobonds * . The Federal Government under Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) on Germany's part strictly rejects this, even if Federal Finance Minister Olaf Scholz (SPD)  at least does not appear to be completely averse.

The badly battered Italy and also France under President Emmanuel Macron, on the other hand, rely on European solidarity - the Italians in particular react frustrated and angry. According to media reports, a downright anti-Germany mood is spreading out of disappointment in the already heavily indebted Mediterranean country

Italy in the Corona crisis: Giuseppe Conte diplomatic, Paolo Savona attacked

While Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte chooses diplomatic words and persistently campaigns for the financial support of the Germans, the controversial top politician, university professor and declared opponent of Germany Paolo Savona * , formerly Minister for Europe, resort to drastic rhetoric - and a Nazi comparison.

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Persistently campaigns for Eurobonds: Italy's Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte.

© dpa / Roberto Monaldo

“They continue to use the same model of the 'radio plan' that came from the Nazi Minister of Economy . In it he suggested that Germany is the country that gives the orders. That all currencies have to be based on the German mark. That Germany is concentrating on industry and all other countries, including Italy , are taking care of agriculture, tourism and the well-being of the Germans, ”said the 83-year-old chief of the Italian stock exchange supervisory authority, RAI .

Corona crisis: conflict between Italy and Germany over Eurobonds

A steep thesis. But why do corona bonds polarize so much? The theory is that European governments go into debt together by borrowing money in the financial markets. Germany is considered to be much more creditworthy than Italy , which has long been in trouble - which is why the rushing Contes.

There should be joint liability for interest and credit installments, but the Federal Government of Merkel is rigorously opposing this approach. Savona is therefore raging - and is not alone in this. 

Corona crisis in Europe: Italian actor railing against Germany

“The Germans still have their relentless arrogance today. Today in economic terms. They still consider themselves a male race, "said the well-known comedian and actor Tullio Solenghi  in a video that went viral on social media:" Thank God I'm Italian. Yes, we should be loafers, also mafiosi, say the Germans. But we are empathetic, we are human. So thank you for being Italian and not German. "

The devastating economic imbalance that Italy is facing due to the Corona crisis does not at least solve this.

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* merkur.de is part of the Germany-wide Ippen-Digital editors network

List of rubric lists: © dpa / Martin Schutt

Source: merkur

All news articles on 2020-04-20

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