Italy's Conte doubles down on demand for coronabonds

The "full firepower" of the European Union will be needed to overcome the historic shock of the coronavirus crisis, Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte told German media Sunday, repeating calls to pool European debt.

Ahead of a video conference between EU leaders this Thursday, Conte reiterated demands for controversial pooled debt instruments known as "coronabonds" in an interview with the Sueddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) newspaper.

"We are experiencing the biggest shock since World War II, and Europe has to come up with an answer," said Conte.

The "full firepower" of the EU was needed, specificially "with the issuance of shared bonds", he added.

He insisted that opposition to coronabonds from the Netherlands and Germany "had to change", and said he was determined to keep advocating for a "shared, ambitious and fair financial instrument" Coronabonds, he added, would not "collectivise past or future debts" but would be "specifically designed and time limited".

Italy is one of several ...