Monday, October 24, 2011

European Leaders Debate Severe Options for Accord

Wall Street Journal
October 24, 2011

European leaders took their first steps toward a new plan to stem the euro crisis, admitting that their last grand plan, agreed to only three months ago, has failed.

The new effort, which leaders hope to finalize at another summit on Wednesday, involves a sweeping recapitalization of European banks, a substantial restructuring of Greece's debts, a bigger bailout fund, and even possibly fresh efforts to entice sovereign-wealth funds in China and elsewhere to come to Europe's aid.

The package remained in flux Sunday, and lower-level officials will toil on it for two more days before leaders reconvene this week. Euro-zone leaders insisted that a deal would be done on Wednesday, and that there was no more time to be lost, after months of delay and denial.

"For the first time, I found the leadership of the euro zone focusing on the fundamentals here in respect to the situation arising from Greece, and the fear of contagion," said Irish Prime Minister Enda Kenny. "There was clearly an understanding that the world is watching Europe and that there isn't any point in doing this in a half-hearted fashion."

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