BERLIN (MNI) – German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble on Monday
again rejected the idea of issuing joint Eurobonds in the Eurozone,
warning that all six triple-A rated Eurozone countries would lose their
top rating if such a bond were adopted.
“No country would be rated triple A any longer…Even Germany would
be too small to carry the whole burden of Europe,” Schaeuble said at a
briefing for the foreign press in Berlin.
The minister once again argued that the only way to win back the
confidence of financial markets is by making the Eurozone a stability
union. The EU Commission needs to get the power to block national
budgets if they violate the Stability and Growth Pact, he demanded.
Commenting on Greece, Schaeuble said that Germany would approve the
long-awaited E8 billion loan tranche for the country if the troika —
officials from the ECB, EU Commission and IMF — gives the green light
at the Eurogroup meeting on Tuesday.
Moreover, he urged a quick conclusion to negotiations for a 50%
haircut on Greek bonds and for a new E130 billion bailout program for
Greece, given that the situation there is “an ongoing source of
contagion” for the rest of the Eurozone.
–Berlin bureau: +49-30-22 62 05 80; email: twidder@marketnews.com
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