BRUSSELS – Faced with a mounting coronavirus death toll and the prospect of a deep recession, European finance ministers have backed a major half-trillion-euro (about $550 billion) rescue package.
But the agreement does little to paper over divisions about how best to tackle the impact of the coronavirus and pave the way for a return to normal life.
Hard-hit countries like Italy and Spain have demanded funds for weeks as they’ve battled to save lives and keep their economies afloat.
As of Friday, more than 64,000 Europeans had been killed by the disease — two thirds of the global toll — the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control says.