–Adds Comments From German Govt To Story Sent At 06:46 GMT
BERLIN (MNI) – German Chancellor Angela Merkel and the newly
elected French president, Francois Hollande, stressed the importance of
the German-Franco relationship in a phone conversation on Sunday, the
German chancellery said.
“Both agree about the importance of close German-Franco relations
and asserted each other that they aim for a good and faithful
cooperation,” the chancellery explained.
Hollande accepted Merkel’s invitation to come to Berlin as soon as
possible.
Speaking at a regular press conference on Monday, German government
spokesman Steffen Seibert said, “The Chancellor is convinced that with
Francois Hollande she has a reliable partner.”
The fact that Merkel had publicly backed outgoing president Nicolas
Sarkozy in the French election campaign “will not hurt” the
German-Franco partnership, Seibert reckoned.
French voters gave the Socialist candidate Hollande a fairly modest
victory of 51.6% over his conservative rival Sarkozy in the final round
of elections on Sunday.
Seibert reaffirmed that the German government opposes any
renegotiations of the EU fiscal compact, as demanded by Hollande. “From
our viewpoint, a renegotiation of the fiscal pact will not be possible,”
the spokesman said.
The German government also continues to oppose debt-financed
economic stimulus programs in the Eurozone, Seibert said. The only way
to reach sustainable economic growth is by undertaking structural
reforms in the member states, he said, repeating the government’s
mantra.
Commenting on the Greek elections, Seibert stressed that any new
government there needed to adhere to the consolidation and reform path
agreed with the EU Commission, the European Central Bank and the
International Monetary Fund.
–Berlin bureau: +49-30-22 62 05 80; email: twidder@marketnews.com
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