Zapatero: “The euro zone is not going to abandon Greece”
July 27th, 2011
The Spanish Prime Minister, José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero insisted on Monday that after two or three issues, it is clear that the euro zone “will not drop Greece” and stressed that private sector participation in Greece’s second bailout is “exceptional and unique.” “Private participation is only for Greece, because the volume of debt is extremely important,” said Zapatero at a news conference in London with British Prime Minister, David Cameron, who he has met in order to discuss various issues, including economics.
As reported in ABC News, Zapatero reminded the markets that the euro zone agreement on Greece is “solid, detailed, and extremely important as it affects the private sector, and also relates to government support,” that is, that the financial commitment is to help Greece until they can go to the market on reasonable terms.
Regarding what policies the euro zone should continue to implement in order to win the confidence of markets, Zapatero gave as an example the deficit reduction that has taken place in Spain in recent years, starting from 11.2% in 2009 and ending at 6 % in 2011. “It’s an extraordinary effort but essential,” stressed the Spanish Prime Minister, pointing out that Spain had had to withdraw some public incentives to meet their debt commitments.
“If we did not have the European Union, if we did not have the euro zone, or the ability to coordinate, this crisis would have extremely serious consequences for all, for those who are in the euro and for those who are not,” warned Zapatero. The Government chief indicated that economic recovery will be “long, hard and difficult”, not only in Spain but “everywhere.” “Therefore, we must cooperate and strengthen the European single market economy, and the stability of the euro and all policies in favour of a more integrated market will give us growth,” he said.
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