Statements concerning Italy (see article) somewhat eclipsed the Eurozone summit on Thursday 18 October, although no decision was expected following the meeting of the Twenty-Seven, which aimed principally to prepare for the decisive summit of December (see EUROPE 12119).
In December, the Eurogroup is to present the European leaders with a roadmap on: - the creation of the common backstop of the Single Resolution Fund, a role to be taken by the European Stability Mechanism (ESM); - ESM reform; - the creation of a European deposit insurance system; - the creation of a fiscal capacity for the Eurozone (see EUROPE 12108, 12091).
“We need to speed up the technical work […]. I hope that today's discussions will inspire the Eurogroup to work more dynamically”, the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk, told the press.
This was echoed by the heads of state or government. “In my view, the work has not yet made enough progress”, said Emmanuel Macron, the French President. “We are determined to present a draft by December. This is the time to move the Eurozone forward”, said Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor.
Of the questions on the table, the creation of a fiscal capacity for the Eurozone has made by far the least progress, according to one diplomatic source.
Spain is reportedly keen to create a European unemployment stabilisation fund, as set out in the Franco-German declaration of Meseberg (see EUROPE 12044), to guarantee an “adequate level of protection for the citizens who are hardest hit in times of crisis”, said Pedro Sánchez, the leader of the Spanish government.
Several countries, in particular France and Portugal, our on-board with this logic, but the northern European countries, led by the Netherlands, are reportedly still just as opposed to creating a common budgetary instrument. (Original version in French by Lucas Tripoteau with the editorial team)