Monti says more central control of national budgets needed

PanARMENIAN.Net - A pooling of eurozone countries' debt, in the form of eurobonds, must be accompanied by increased budget control at a European level, Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti said in an interview Wednesday, July 4.

"We need a partial mutualisation of debt, but also more central control of national budgets," Monti told the daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, according to AFP.

"Without proper control it would be irresponsible to burden others with a share of your own debt," he said. "Germany and Italy take the same line on this and are prepared to surrender national sovereignty," Monti added.

The interview appeared on the same that day when German Chancellor Angela Merkel is scheduled to meet Monti in Rome following perceived tensions between the two leaders at last week's EU summit.

But Monti played down any differences. "Angela + Mario = a step forward for European economic policy," he said.

"For several months now, the German and the Italian governments have both been working at a number of European summits to steer the EU onto the path of growth while still adhering to budgetary discipline," Monti said.

Monti insisted that Italy "isn't calling for a rescue and isn't calling for eurobonds. Italy is doing everything that is being demanded of it to boost growth."

Monti conceded that his government would not be able to solve the deep structural problems facing Italy in the year and four months his government had left in office. "It's also a question of the economy. If a government such as ours implements the big fiscal adjustments, that will be a burden to the economy in the short term," he said.

Monti and Merkel are scheduled to hold a joint news conference in Rome later on Wednesday.