Devex: ‘The politics of generosity’: Brussels aims to counter Chinese narrative on coronavirus
“As the European Commission unveils its response to the coronavirus around the world this week, expect a lot of talk about ‘Team Europe.’ … The release of the commission’s global COVID-19 policy Tuesday and upcoming meeting of European Union development ministers Wednesday come after an internal note from Koen Doens, the director general of the commission’s development arm, DEVCO, that emphasized the need for ‘a strong and coordinated European response in a geopolitical context.’ ‘COVID-19 risks being politicized to the advantage of international actors with a different agenda to ours,’ the note read. ‘This is the case of China, which has moved on from being the cause and the epicenter of the crisis to being perceived as a strong supporter of efforts by affected third countries to contain the crisis’…” (Chadwick, 4/7).

POLITICO: European Union science chief resigns, slamming bloc’s coronavirus response
“The president of the E.U.’s top science funding agency stepped down Tuesday, issuing a damning indictment of the bloc’s response to the coronavirus crisis. Mauro Ferrari, an Italian-American scientist who has led the European Research Council since January, said he had resigned following a dispute over the E.U.’s approach to the crisis — stating he has ‘lost faith in the system’…” (Greenhalgh, 4/7).