MADRID - Six European Union (EU) leaders have proposed greater collaboration to mitigate future pandemics through building up critical medicine and health equipment stocks among other measures, as the region continues to battle the spread of the coronavirus (COVID-19).
As reported by Reuters, Belgian Prime Minister Sophie Wilmes, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Polish President Andrzej Duda, and Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez have voiced their support for proposals for shared research in a joint paper addressed to European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen.
“A broader, holistic EU strategy could be more efficient than each member state attempting to enhance preparedness on their own,” they wrote in the paper.
Measures proposed by the six leaders include maintaining a three-month stock of medicines and medical supplies and equipment across the EU and greater collaboration between member countries and companies.
In addition, they also recommend better research and development capacity for vaccines and more funding for clinical trials.
As of Tuesday (9/6), EU countries and the UK have 1,444,710 confirmed COVID-19 cases with 169,207 deaths. The UK leads the tally with 287,399 cases, followed by Spain with 241,717 and Italy with 235,278. (MS)