Brussels, 01/07/2002 (Agence Europe) - During his presentation of the annual Bank of France report at a press conference on Monday in Paris, the governor of the Bank of France, Jean-Claude Trichet came out in favour of a strong Euro and stressed that respect for the European stability and Growth Pact was essential for the economy of the Euro-zone. Mr Trichet considers that "respect for the Stability and Growth Pact is the only means that we have of ensuring economic, monetary and financial stability in the Euro zone, in the absence of a significant European Union federal budget." He added that without this pact, " we would be unable to guarantee the balanced dosage of budgetary and monetary policies in the Euro-zone (the "pick and mix" and we would be exposing ourselves to criticism from the Eurosceptics".