Man and disease go hand in hand from the very early steps of human civilisation. Excavations in many Neolithic settlements across the globe reveal signs of devastating epidemics, sometimes resulting in abandoning the village altogether, or the decimation of its entire population. Yet, few epidemics turned to become pandemics raging so wildly that the final outcome was a significant change of the history of mankind.

School pupils across the globe have been asked to stay at home while their governments battle with the coronavirus pandemic. For some, this might come as an extended vacation; for others, their qualifications and future plans are at stake - or worse, their next meal. DPA looks at the new reality for hundreds of millions of children and teenagers:

Statistics and experts seem to suggest that, as I write this, China – the starting point and original epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic – is started to contain its spread. But it has come at a cost.

Three months ago, no one knew that SARS-CoV-2 existed. Now the virus has spread to almost every country, infecting at least 446,000 people whom we know about, and many more whom we do not. It has crashed economies and broken health-care systems, filled hospitals and emptied public spaces. It has separated people from their workplaces and their friends. It has disrupted modern society on a scale that most living people have never witnessed. 

A virus of yet unknown origin has put mighty Europe into an intensive-care ward, struggling for breath on artificial ventilation. It's hard to believe but this same Europe, which has launched a multibillion-euro programme for space research and a similarly expensive AI development programme, all of a sudden woke up to a deficit of medical masks and protective gear for medical professionals, without enough beds in hospitals and short of medical personnel. And no satellites were needed to see that.

The COVID-19 outbreak has turned into a fast-moving emergency, figures and measures are constantly changing across Europe and the world, affecting all levels of society.

This is unbelievable - the Bulgarian Orthodox Church is still planning on holding Easter services. Never mind the pandemic, the declared state of emergency, the massive health risk to both the congregation and the priests.

The world will never be the same once the coronavirus crisis is over. A sentence like this can be read or heard in every second analysis or interview on the topic, across the globe, on a daily basis. Few dare to enter deeper into details and elaborate on what the differences from the pre-coronavirus situation will be eventually.

The COVID-19 coronavirus is overwhelming European hospitals and the death toll is rising; meanwhile, lockdowns are laying waste to economies. Not surprisingly, the top priority for European leaders’ video conferences is how to mitigate the human and economic damage to their countries. Even so, the EU cannot afford to neglect the impact of the spread of COVID-19 beyond its borders.

Up until a month ago, the next Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF) was the top priority on the agenda of the EU. Since then, an unprecedented health crisis has hit the world and, rightly so, the MFF negotiations have effectively been put on hold. However, the consequences of postponing the agreement remain: a delay to the implementation of EU programmes next year or, even worse, no agreement on the MFF before December.