BELGIUM: EU leaders under pressure to agree credible policy response to euro zone crisis

Record ID: 859269

  • Title: BELGIUM: EU leaders under pressure to agree credible policy response to euro zone crisis
  • Date: 12th March 2011
  • Summary: BRUSSELS, BELGIUM (MARCH 11, 2011) (REUTERS) POLICEMEN WALKING IN LINE SATELLITE DISHES AND EUROPEAN FLAG EUROGROUP CHAIRMAN JEAN-CLAUDE JUNCKER ARRIVING BACK VIEW: JUNCKER TALKING TO JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (English) EUROGROUP CHAIRMAN, JEAN-CLAUDE JUNCKER, SAYING: "We have to be able to present by the end of the month a serious answer that will be taken seriously by the markets." GREEK PRIME MINISTER GEORGE PAPANDREOU ARRIVING REAR VIEW OF PAPANDREOU TALKING TO JOURNALISTS (SOUNDBITE) (English) GREEK PRIME MINISTER, GEORGE PAPANDREOU, SAYING: "On the financial euro zone crisis we are on track with our programme, we have taken the pain to make our economy viable, but now we need European decisions -- strong European decisions -- to calm the market." PORTUGAL PRIME MINISTER JOSE SOCRATES ARRIVING
  • Embargoed: 27th March 2011 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Belgium, Belgium
  • City:
  • Country: Belgium
  • Topics: European Union
  • Reuters ID: LVAPLIMP6Z0VXQ7MQHVZDSKL8L3
  • Aspect Ratio:
  • Story Text: Eurozone leaders discuss how to boost economic coordination as they try and put an end to the debt crisis that started in Greece, hit Ireland and threatened Portugal and Spain.
    Euro zone leaders will issue a statement on Ireland, Portugal and Greece at a summit on Friday (March 11), including welcoming Portugal's latest steps to reduce its budget deficit, according to a senior EU source.
    The statement may also call on Greece to work harder to implement its EU/IMF economic reform programme, amid signs that Greece is not going to meet its targets, the source said.
    Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou said on Friday his country had been doing its part to reform its economy and that Europe now needed to take strong decisions to calm financial markets.
    "On the financial euro zone crisis, we are on top of our programme, we have taken the pain to make our economy viable, but now we need European decisions -- strong European decisions -- to calm the market," Papandreou told reporters.
    Euro zone leaders are also expected to hold off formally signing a "competitiveness pact", even though they are likely to agree the document broadly, with the majority of euro zone states wanting Germany to step forward with a commitment to strengthen the euro zone bailout fund first.
    The pact will only be formally signed at a summit on March 24/25, the source said.
    Portugal also announced additional spending cuts and reforms on Friday to cut its deficit by an extra 0.8 percent of gross domestic product this year, in an attempt to stave off intense pressure to take a bailout.
    The announcement from Lisbon came as euro zone leaders were set to meet in Brussels to discuss changes to the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) and the set-up of the European Stability Mechanism -- the current and future funds that are to help euro zone countries cut off from markets.
    The risk of credit downgrades for euro zone governments will intensify if European leaders cannot agree a credible and coherent policy response to the bloc's debt crisis, ratings agency Fitch said on Friday.
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