TOKYO (MNI) – Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti renewed his call
on the European Union to boost its regional financial firewall in order
to prevent the contagion of the debt crisis from spreading.
He also said in a speech here that European integration is the only
way for the region to compete better in globalizing markets.
Monti said he is confident about Italy’s plans to implement labor
market and other social and political reforms and bring in foreign
investment because political parties are more aware that there is public
demand for governance.
The technocratic prime minister said he and German Chancellor
Angela Merkel have a fundamental and philosophical difference.
“I think she’s almost right but not entirely,” he said.
Monti acknowledged that if the European Central Bank had injected
more liquidity into financial markets last year, the pressure to conduct
fiscal, social and political reforms would have been smaller.
But he also said while more than 50% of what the Italian government
has done in terms of policy measures was already implemented in January,
“Yet we didn’t see a decline in interest rates.”
Monti said Rome has rejected suggestions for seeking financial aid
from the EU or International Monetary Fund because it believes Italy has
its own resources.
“Although we do not intend to use it, Europe needs to have a higher
firewall,” he said. “The higher the firewall, the lower the probability
that the money would ever be needed.”
tokyo@marketnews.com
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