brussels eu leaders are set to haggle on thursday over a giant package to help their economies recover from the coronavirus pandemic but bitter divisions mean little progress is expectedthe situation facing the eu is dire more than 110000 confirmed covid19 deaths and the economy suffering an unprecedented collapse according to alarming fresh databut while the 27 members agree that a stimulus running into hundreds of billions of euros dollars will be needed they are split over how it should be funded and sharedthe leaders will meet by videolink to discuss the virus crisis for the fourth time in seven weeks a sign one senior brussels official said of the seriousness of the challenge and the importance we attach to a common solutiongerman chancellor angela merkel europes most influential leader gave her firm backing to beefing up the eu budget but others are looking for more novel ways to reboot the economy including joint borrowingthe fight has reopened the wounds of the 2009 financial crisis once again pitting northern and southern europe against one anothersouthern states like spain and italy badly hit by the disease and heavily indebted are demanding solidarity financial help from their richer partners far beyond what the eu budget can providethe countries of the south have the impression that certain states which are currently economically stronger will use this crisis to be even stronger a senior european official told afpand those in the north believe that the south will take advantage of the pandemic to unburden themselves of past debt the source addeditalian prime minister giuseppe conte has pushed the hardest for mutualised eu debt dubbed coronabondshe told the italian parliament on tuesday he would accept no compromises and would not sign up to a bargain dealon the other side northern countries led by germany and the netherlands refuse even to entertain the idea of coronabonds and other mooted solutionsspain has proposed the idea of perpetual bonds usually only used in wartime that has already been dismissed by the norththe european budget has for decades been the tried and tested instrument for common tasks in the eu merkel told lawmakers in berlin ahead of the crunch talksin the spirit of solidarity we should be prepared to make completely different that is to say significantly higher contributions to the european budget over a set period merkel saidin a sign of how far apart they are leaders will not even issue their usual joint statement after the videoconference a diplomat told afpeu council president charles michel the nominal host of the summit set a low bar in the invitation letter sent to leaders on tuesdayhe urged them only to work towards creating a european recovery fund to rebuild the blocs economy after the pandemic easesthe leaders are expected to ask the european commission the blocs executive in charge of the eu budget to come back with a proposalthey will also sign off on a 540billioneuro 584billion emergency package agreed by eu finance ministers earlier this