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Boris Johnson fell victim to his own policy of implementing the theory of herd immunity yet he is by no means the only leader who downplayed the pandemic for the sake of the economy.

For the eurozone member-states to transcend their differences and strike a deal it took tough negotiations of the kind to which the EU is accustomed.

Society will find another way to mark the great Easter holiday -with self-discipline and an expression of love for other people by abiding with public health measures that save lives.

The chasm between Northern and Southern Europe exists not only in supranational structures such as the EU but also in individual states, such as Italy, where there is a geographic chasm in the distribution of wealth. It can be seen to a lesser degree in France.

We must show strength and virtues such as patience because that is the only way to proceed with the greatest degree of safety as we approach a gradual lifting of the restrictive measures.

In such difficult times the government, state institutions, and society must transcend themselves, and that is a one-way street as there is no other way.

'We need a clear expression of European solidarity in the corona pandemic. Germany is willing. It is now Europe’s common task to buttress the existing programmes, fill the gaps and to span a safety net for all EU states that need further support. '

Germany, has begun to shed its fears from the past and that it is no longer bedeviled by the spectre of inflation and by the memory of the Weimar Republic – that it understands the concerns and challenges with which the contemporary world is confronted.

It would be a singular feat of self-deception if one were to believe that we can get through this crisis unscathed, yet each of us can strive to minimise the cost to the extent possible.

Greece’s 10-year economic depression has deprived the country of the requisite means to grapple with the current public health crisis with a full arsenal of weapons.

Solidarity should be expressed in the small and big things in daily life by the stronger to the weaker, by the haves to the have-nots, and of course by the youth to the elderly.

Clearly, the government has no choice but to support suffering citizens, but eventually that will be well nigh impossible without the support and solidarity of Greece’s EU partners.

This is a battle on two fronts. The first is the push to ensure strict adherence to public health guidelines and the other is the effort to support those who have economically been hit hard by those measures.

Βy Andrea Enria, Chair of the Supervisory Board of the ECB

For the crisis to be weathered successfully the state must exhaust all its forces to protect society, which in turn must act with cognisance of the danger and with a sense of responsibility.

The predominant goal now is to protect public health but that does not mean that the economy can be left to its own devices.

In the midst of a long and difficult struggle our society appears to have comprehended that composure, maturity, and discipline are its best allies.

At a time when Europe is being racked by a pandemic and multi-nationals are announcing the suspension of part of their activity it cannot afford to leave millions of workers to their own devices.

In her first statement as president Sakellaropoulou spoke of 'the difficult but not unsolvable equation' of both guarding the borders and fulfilling one’s humanitarian duty defenceless and desperate people.

There will be EU relief on various levels and most importantly the suspension of the 3.5 percent primary surplus target which Greece had agreed upon with creditors long before the pandemic.

'The enemy is the virus and now we have to do our utmost to protect our people and to protect our economies,' said Ursula von der Leyen.

We are still at the beginning of an extremely difficult uphill struggle which we are obliged to fight until the end under extremely adverse circumstances.

Infectious Diseases expert Professor Sotiris Tsiodras said that there were 21 new cases since in the 24 hours since 16 March. The source of infection for 51 cases is undetermined, he added.

'Our country, Europe, and the entire planet is in the midst of an unprecedented crisis the consequences of which right now we are unable to predict or even imagine,' said President Katerina Sakellaropoulou.

The government is scurrying to swiftly address the economic emergency with an initial framework of compensation for businesses which are being battered by the expected extended lockdown.

We cannot afford to have more people doing just as they please and that means that the state must use all the legal means in its arsenal to make it perfectly clear that such behaviour will not be tolerated.

A sense of measure is what is needed in these critical hours and that objective can only be achieved if everyone participates. No system can survive if society loses its sense of measure.

Epidemiologists and other specialists in the public health system have issued clear guidelines on how to handle the virus, a number of which depend on everyone’s cooperation.

Composure in dealing with COVID-19 must not give way to panic and recklessness must not undermine the requisite sense of individual responsibility, which entails assiduously tending to personal hygiene and religiously enforcing the guidelines o

Moscow is now a major player in the region and its influence is inversely proportional to that of other strong players such as the US and the EU.