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Cabinet to Discuss Eurozone's Emergency Loan Facility on Wednesday
Tuesday 13 July 2010 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, July 13 (TASR) - At its second session following its appointment, the new Government is slated to discuss, inter alia, the issue of the eurozone's emergency loan facility and the loan to Greece, Prime Minister Iveta Radicova's spokesman Rado Bato told TASR on Tuesday.
According to the new Cabinet, Slovakia will okay the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) only if a binding agreement is made by eurozone countries concerning reforms in the banking sector, the European Commission, Eurostat and rating agencies, said Bato.
According to the spokesman, Radicova appreciates Germany's efforts to seek a way of enabling countries with exorbitant debts to undergo controlled bankruptcy. "This is exactly what we brought up two months ago," she said when holding talks in Brussels with the EU's top officials.
The new Cabinet has no intention of blocking a political agreement on EFSF, which was approved in general terms by former Slovak premier Robert Fico. Radicova is reluctant, however, to narrow this serious issue down to a mere timeframe for signing the agreement.
"The Government has substantial reservations regarding the manner in which the European Monetary Union decided to face the debt crisis of some of its member countries. That's why it will insist on an agreement guaranteeing that the risks of such a situation being repeated will be brought down to a minimum," said the premier.
While in Brussels, Radicova on Monday met European Council President Herman Van Rompuy. After the talks, she stated that she can't give any consent to allocating resources for EFSF without the approval of the Slovak Government and Parliament.
On Tuesday, she is set to meet European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso, President of the Euro Group Jean-Claude Juncker and NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen. Meanwhile, Slovak Finance Minister Ivan Miklos is attending a two-day session of finance ministers of EU countries.
The framework agreement on EFSF needs Slovakia's signature in order to become operational. The EU and IMF are planning to accumulate a total of €750 billion aimed at rescuing states in trouble by providing them with financial assistance. If signed, Slovakia's share in the package will reach €4.37 billion.
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