Germany, France Suggest Boosting 'Strategic Health Sovereignty' - Joint Statement

BERLIN (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 18th May, 2020) Germany and France suggest that the European Union should work on its "strategic health sovereignty" through a joint strategy, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Emmanuel Macron said Monday in a joint statement.

"France and Germany propose the following measures ...

strengthening our strategic health sovereignty through an EU 'Health strategy'," the statement read.

"We call for a European health industry with a strategic positioning that will improve the scope of European health systems and reduce dependence on the EU, while fully respecting the responsibility of the member states," the statement said.

The two countries are also suggesting an EU recovery fund, which would provide 500 billion Euros ($545 billion) in EU budget spending to back the sectors and regions that were hit hardest.