Germany, France to strengthen Eurozone

French FM warns EU’s two largest economies must deliver successful reforms, or extremists would take over

The finance ministers of Germany and France agreed yesterday to strengthen the Eurozone, giving a new impulse to stalled reforms of the currency union and warning that if they fail political extremists will take power.

Wolfgang Schaeuble and Bruno Le Maire agreed at their first meeting since the May 7 election of Emmanuel Macron as French president to set up a joint working group that would present ideas by July on deepening Eurozone integration.

Le Maire said the group would look at fiscal convergence, coordinating economic policy and joint investment projects, and warned that the Eurozone’s two largest economies must deliver successful reform during Macron’s fiveyear term.

“We have a responsibility to deliver results,” the Frenchman said in a joint news conference with Schaeuble, noting the strong performance of farleft and far-right candidates in France’s presidential election.

“This obliges us all to deliver concrete results. Because if we don’t succeed the extremes will succeed us,” he added, before flying together with Schaeuble to Brussels for a Eurozone finance ministers’ meeting.

Schaeuble added: “We both know that a central challenge Under pressure from the IMF, Eurozone finance ministers will consider major debt relief and fresh aid for Greece despite the deep reservations of bailout-weary Germany.

Ministers from the 19-member single currency bloc must confront the sensitive topic at talks in Brussels after Greek lawmakers fulfilled the Eurozone’s latest demands for painful reforms last Thursday.

The vote in parliament, which was met by angry protests, satisfied the conditions of Greece’s bailout and opened the way for debt relief as well as fresh loans so that Athens can repay loans of €7.0 billion ($7.8 billion, Dh28.6 billion) in July.

“Our country ... has fulfilled its obligations totally and on time,” Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos said on Sunday ahead of the crunch talks, which begin in Brussels at 1300 GMT. for both of us as finance ministers is to make our contribution to the promotion of Europe at a time of chances but also of challenges.” “We know strengthening the monetary union is of great importance,” he said, adding that Germany and France had a special leadership role in the 19-member Eurozone.

With Germany’s economy — Europe’s largest — outperforming that of France, the traditional Franco-German engine at the heart of the EU that has often misfired in recent years.