Germany breaks taboo in effort to get EU through pandemic

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — Germany’s agreement to share debt with other EU countries to finance an economic recovery plan is being greeted as an overdue sign of unity in the face of the worst downturn the bloc has ever seen and as a potential advance toward deeper integration among its 27 members.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel broke with her country’s longstanding opposition to raising money together with other - often poorer - EU countries. But the proposal made with French President Emmanuel Macron is limited in scale and duration, which could help her sell it to skeptics back home.

It consists of 500 billion euros ($550 billion) in loans and grants to help countries through the recession, and is viewed by some as a step toward stronger EU ties as the 27-country union faces challenges not just from the virus crisis, but from populist forces in member countries Hungary and Poland who want to loosen the bloc’s ties.

France, whose president had pushed hard for the fund proposal announced Monday, exulted. “It’s a historic breakthrough,” said Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire on Tuesday. “We will be able to support the economic recovery in the countries most hit by the virus.”

“The second consequence is political: France and Germany affirm loud and clear their determination to see solidarity among European Union members placed at the heart of the European construction,” he said, calling it “a historical step for the whole European Union.”

Macron and Merkel suggested that the fund would send money starting in 2021 to the areas hardest hit by the virus outbreak and target sectors that are priorities for EU economic policy such as digitalization and fighting climate change.

The fund would be a one-off part of the EU’s budget and take advantage of...