Withdrawal from the European Union

Future eurozone bailout programs should aim more at restoring economic growth rather than focusing mainly on fiscal tightening, and their length should be set accordingly, an independent report commissioned by the bloc's bailout fund said.

American economist Paul Krugman, one of the more vocal proponents of a Greek exit from the euro during the 2009-2019 debt crisis, is pointing to Greece as one of the countries that have successfully managed to contain the spread of the coronavirus.

The COVID-19 pandemic, arising in a period when the European Union (EU) struggles with many difficulties, such as the Euro crisis, the refugee pressure, Brexit and the rise of populism, is a significant challenge that can affect the EU to a considerable extent.

Estimates pointing to a deep recession in Greece this year and a steep rise in the national debt as a result of measures to contain the coronavirus pandemic are generating questions about what will happen once the crisis subsides and raising new debt sustainability concerns. Economists asked by Kathimerini stress that Greece is armed with weapons it did not have before.

More than 70 percent of Italians estimate that a coronavirus crisis will cause the European Union crack-up, the research has shown.

The World Bank has revised significantly its estimates of the Romanian economy's advance this year, down to 0.3 percent from 3.8 percent, as projected three months ago, but growth would gradually bounce back in the second half of 2020 and further accelerate in 2021 to 4.4 percent, according to the World Bank's economic update spring 2020.

Eurozone states that need aid from the bloc's bailout fund to tackle the coronavirus should get it quickly and be first subjected to visits from officials proposing policies like during the eurozone crisis, Germany's finance minister said.

With the eurozone economy in need of help during the coronavirus epidemic, officials have until April 9 to design a package that satisfies members with completely opposing views: those calling for joint debt issuance and those fiercely against it.

'The COVID-19 pandemic has led to a major economic shock that is already having a significant negative impact in the European Union,' EU finance ministers said in a statement.

Turkish Trade Minister Ruhsar Pekcan has told the ambassadors of EU countries in Ankara that Turkey is waiting for the European Commission to renew the 1996 customs union agreement.

"Your contributions in this sense are exceptionally important. We invite you to work with the business world," she said at a meeting with the EU Delegation to Turkey on Feb. 26.