Taj program pomoći bez presedana, koji iznosi preko 70 puta više od sveukupne pomoći obezbijeđene za poslijeratnu obnovu u Evropi u okviru američkog Maršalovog plana u periodu 1948-1951, najavljen je nakon 11-satnih maratonskih pregovora među ministrima finansija zemalja EU u Briselu.
The unprecedented aid programme, amounting to more than 70 times the overall assistance provided for post-war recovery in Europe under the US Marshall Plan between 1948 and 1951, was announced after 11 hours of marathon talks among the EU finance ministers in Brussels.