Differences remain among EU states on recovery fund, budget - Merkel

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday she could not guarantee that EU member states would reach an agreement on a coronavirus recovery fund and a multi-year budget at a leaders summit this week given that differences remain.

"The positions remain apart," Merkel said during a news conference with Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte. "I can't say today whether we will reach an agreement on Friday."

She added that Italy and Germany agreed on the basic structure of the EU proposals.