EU approves 191.5 billion euros in recovery funds for Italy

ROME (AP) — The European Union’s executive branch has given the formal nod to 191.5 billion euros in pandemic recovery funds for Italy. Premier Mario Draghi said the money will help make the EU’s third-largest economy “more just, more competitive and more sustainable in its growth.” The Commission’s approval of the plan to help relaunch the Italian economy after the pandemic on Tuesday is an important step toward the distribution of funds for Italy’s vast reform and investment plan. EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, at a joint press conference in Rome with Draghi, said the first funds could be released in four weeks, after the European Council approves the plan.