Brussels, 23/03/2003 (Agence Europe) - During the work of the European Council, Commission President Romano Prodi declared, as pointed out earlier, that the economic impact of the war in Iraq could be taken into account when assessing compliance with the Stability and Growth Pact by the Member States (see EUROPE of 22 March, p.3).
Speaking at the summit, President of the French Republic, Jacques Chirac, also, evoked economic and budgetary policy problems, affirming that France had "chosen to conduct a responsible budgetary policy which aims to avoid weighing down growth by over-restrictive measures" and which "also aims to strengthen the effectiveness of public spending".
Luxembourg's Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker told the press that the war is an exceptional event "at any rate, but to say today that it will have exceptional impact at economic level, independently of how it unfolds and of its possibly exceptional consequences, is a highly dangerous approach with more after-thoughts than thoughts". It is obvious that an event of this kind "must be taken into consideration, but all will depend on how long the war lasts and on its final macro-economic impact", he concluded.