Banish 'self-centredness', pope tells the world as it faces coronavirus

Pope Francis reads his "Urbi et Orbi" ("To the City and the World") message in St. Peter's Basilica with no public participation due to an outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) on Easter Sunday at the Vatican, April 12, 2020. Vatican Media/Handout via REUTERS

VATICAN CITY (Reuters) - Pope Francis called on Sunday for global solidarity in fighting the coronavirus pandemic and its economic fallout, urging the relaxation of international sanctions, debt relief for poor nations and ceasefires in all conflicts.

He also warned the European Union that it risked collapse if it did not agree on how to help the region recover.