| English.news.cn 2011-09-28 19:16:07 |  Feedback  Print RSS  |
BRUSSELS, Sept. 28 (Xinhua) -- "Greece is, and will remain, a member of the euro area." Juan Manuel Barroso, President of the European Commission told European Parliament Wednesday.
He pledged that European Union would fully support Greece, on conditions that Greece fully implements its commitment.
Barroso told the Parliament Members that the Commission was working to help Greece reactivate its economy. "A program of 500 million euros to guarantee EIB (European Investment Bank) loans to Greek SMEs is already under way. The Commission is also considering a wider guarantee mechanism to help banks lend again to the real economy." He said.
He also pointed out that apart from helping debt-laden nations like Greece, maintaining stability in eurozone and preventing contagion of crisis should be primary tasks in the short term. "Some credible firepower and effective firewalls for Europe is needed to deal with sovereign debt crisis in the short term," Barroso said.
The first step was to quickly fix the way to solve sovereign debt crisis, and the measures should be built on the base of EFST and upcoming European Stability Mechanism, according to Barroso.
"EFSF shall be made both stronger and more flexible, this is what the Commission proposed in January," Barroso said. He also urged Member States to ratify resolution of July 21 summit, "only then, when you ratify this, it will be able to deploy precautionary interventions, intervene to support recapitalization of commercial banks and intervene in secondary markets to help avoid contagion." He said.
Barroso also pledged to speed up the making ESM into force, as well as deeper integration of coordination of eurozone. "This Six Pact reforms stability and growth prospect, and widen surveillance on macro-economic balances." He said. "I really want to thank you and congratulate you for that," Barroso also stressed that discipline and integration were key to future of eurozone, but meanwhile pledged to go further to combine the monetary union with economic union. "We need a truly community approach, we need to integrate euroarea, we need to complete the monetary with a real economic union." Barroso said. He described the "Six Pact" as foundation of economic union, and pledged that the Commission would present in the coming weeks proposals to deepen integrations. What's more, Barroso also stressed needs to combine it with "Euro Plus Pack" to enhance competitiveness. He also seeks the opportunity to advocate the idea of Eurobond, but stated that this could only be done when "Europe is fully equipped with instruments necessary to insure both discipline and integration." Related: BERLIN, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Tuesday that Germany wants a strong Greece staying within the eurozone and will offer all necessary supports, while urging indebted Athens to fulfill their own responsibilities. In a joint press conference with visiting Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou in Berlin, Merkel said "Germany is ready to offer every assistance necessary" for a strong Greece and will help the debt-crippled country stay in the 17-nation eurozone. Full story ATHENS, Sept. 27 Xinhua) -- Greek Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos expressed confidence on Tuesday that Greece will get the sixth EU/IMF aid installment "in time" to avoid default this October. Amidst continuing anti-austerity protests, Venizelos told reporters here that Athens will fulfill all pledges for fiscal consolidation and growth under the terms of the three-year bailout pact secured in 2010 by foreign lenders. Full story ATHENS, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- Greece announced on Wednesday evening a fresh package of austerity measures to weather the debt crisis that threatens the eurozone country with default. Up to 30,000 civil servants will be dismissed by the end of 2011 through a labor reserve program, according to a statement following a marathon cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister George Papandreou. Full story 
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