The outbreak of the coronavirus is affecting all countries and member states and the EU are determined to tackle it together. This support is not only in the form of donations of essential medical equipment such as masks and ventilators. Countries are also taking in critically ill patients from other parts of the EU and helping to repatriate EU citizens who have been left stranded abroad.

Everyone, regardless of the country’s size, is pitching in. While France has donated masks and Germany has delivered medical equipment to Italy, Luxembourg has been taking in intensive care patients from France and the Czech Republic has donated protective suits to Italy and Spain.

Countries are also pooling resources to bring stranded Europeans back home. Since the start of the outbreak, thousands of EU citizens have been brought back. One in three passengers is not from the EU country organising the flight. Many more flights are being organised with more seats being made available to other EU nationals.

Meanwhile the EU is funding research into treatments and a vaccine, organising joint purchases of essential equipment, as well as making €37 billion available to EU countries to fight the virus and much more.