German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said her country must remain "clever and cautious" in handling the coronavirus crisis, as it is "not the end phase but still just the beginning".
Merkel told parliament ahead of an EU summit, via videolink and pointed out that she understood the urge to relax coronavirus restrictions as soon as possible but moving too quickly risked setting back what had already been achieved.
Merkel said, "We are in for the long haul. We must not lose energy before we reach the end,” and she added: “It would be a terrible shame if our hope punishes us."
"We are not living in the final phase of the pandemic, but still at the beginning. We will be living with this virus for a long time" she said..
She mentioned that Germany should be ready to "make very different, meaning much higher contributions to the EU budget".
EU leaders are expected to sign off on a new 540 billion euros emergency fund to protect countries, European workers and businesses worst affected by the coronavirus outbreak.
