Von der Leyen Commission

Leaders of the four are due to discuss the issue at a meeting on June 11. But experts and officials are sceptical they will bridge their differences.

"We don't expect to see a strong unified front as we did during the migrant crisis," said Vit Havelka, an analyst at the Prague-based Europeum think tank.

Greece is planning purchases worth millions of euros to equip the Hellenic Police's (ELAS) riot force with shields, helmets, uniforms, bullet-proof vests and other supplies, including large quantities of tear gas, in anticipation of a fresh push on the northeastern border with Turkey by undocumented migrants and refugees trying to force their way into the European Union.

Greece on Wednesday welcomed a plan proposed by the European Commission to disburse 750 billion euros in grants and loans to European Union countries to help them recover from the economic impact of the coronavirus.

Under the proposal, Greece is expected to receive 32 billion euros from the new recovery fund over three years - 22.5 billion in grants and 9.4 billion in loans.

The government is expecting a growth boost to the tune of 1.5-2% of gross domestic product for the next three years through the EU Recovery Fund, if it is approved, based on a proposal the European Commission will submit on Wednesday.

She stated that Serbia was "part of the Europe team" which collected over 4 billion dollars for the fight against COVID-19.
"Western Balkans belongs to the EU and no one in the EU questions this. I firmly believe that the EU has a special responsibility to help its partners in the region," von der Leyen said.

Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis is to participate in the intenational initiative Coronavirus Global Response at 4 p.m. Greek time on Monday.

President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan will attend a videoconference meeting of the EU this week about a fundraising campaign on supporting vaccine studies against the COVID-19 pandemic, Presidential Spokesperson İbrahim Kalın said on May 2.

The European Union will spare no effort to help the world come together against coronavirus, said Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission, at the joint press conference with a number of world leaders, which the World Health Organization hosted on 24 April.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said on Thursday the next seven-year EU budget linked to a recovery fund was the only way to steer the bloc out of the COVID-19 crisis and that its size had to increase.

In her address to the EP, she called for the urgent establishment of a "Marshall Plan for Europe", primarily through the EU budget.
In her speech on the EU response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ursula von der Leyen before the European Parliament expressed her condolences for the "tens of thousands of victims" of coronavirus in Europe.