Italy's wrangle with some European Union partners over using 'coronabonds' and complete budgetary freedom to offset the economic impact of the coronavirus is "the most difficult negotiation that Italy has ever had at the EU level," Foreign Minister Luigi Di Maio said Monday after an EU summit ended in stalemate last week with leaders taking two weeks to try for a deal.
Rome rejected northern countries' call for the use of the European Stability Mechanism while northern deficit hawks rejected a call from Italy and other southern European countries for the new Euro bonds and for Stability Pact deficit rules to be totally waived.
Di Maio said Monday that Italy was "raising its voice not because we are Euroskeptics or out of arrogance." He said "Italy is not to blame for this pandemic, and must be able to spend everything necessary to help its people".
On the virus fight, Di Maio added that "our doctors, our nurses, are our outpost in this war".
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