The German government has rejected any notion there should be common debt in the European Union to be shared by its 27 countries. The proposal was said to be a report from EU President Herman Van Rompuy’s to be presented to the region’s leaders in a two-day meeting in Brussels beginning on Oct. 18.
Michael Link, German Minister of State, stated that no common payment of debt in the EU is on the table no matter how it is called. He pointed out that the German government has repeatedly stayed firm on this position.
At the same time he underlined that the EU should not give the impression of having a split over the issue. “Those who propose things that others have firmly stood against, are those who prepare a split which will only lead in a new summit,” he stated. Van Rompuy’s report didn’t specifically mention Eurobonds but suggested the EU’s budget should include “its ability to get loans.”
The idea of shared debt and issuance of Eurobonds was backed by former Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou as a way to help alleviate the country’s staggering debt problem which forced him to seek bailouts from the Troika of the EU and International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank. German Chancellor Angela Merkel is staunchly opposed.
(Source: tvxs.gr)
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