Reply #12: Merkel Urges German Parliament to Back Greece Aid, Warns Banks

[ozymandius]

May 5 (Bloomberg) -- Chancellor Angela Merkel appealed to parliament to approve aid for Greece, saying the entire 110 billion-euro ($143 billion) Greek bailout and the euro’s stability lie in German hands.

In a speech to lawmakers in Berlin today urging them to back Germany’s 22.4 billion-euro contribution, Merkel coupled her plea with a demand for sanctions on countries with excessive deficits and said that banks can’t “shirk their responsibility” for the crisis.

Merkel, whose coalition has a majority in the lower and upper houses of parliament, aims to have both chambers approve Germany’s share of the bailout on May 7, the same day she heads to Brussels for a meeting of government leaders of the 16 euro nations. Merkel called two days ago for the European Union to study “orderly” defaults of states to ensure creditors participate in any future rescue.

In her speech to parliament, Merkel welcomed an offer by Deutsche Bank AG Chief Executive Officer Josef Ackermann and German financial companies yesterday to help Greece by refinancing maturing Greek debt and maintain existing credit lines. Yet she said banks can’t expect to make a deal with her government.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2010-05-05/merkel-urges-german-parliament-to-back-greece-aid-warns-banks.html