06/08/2012
German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle expressed his complete rejection to the proposed expansion of the European permanent bailout fund (ESM) as well as the purchase of heavy European government bonds.
He proposed to establish a joint guarantee of the sovereign debt for countries of the euro zone. German weekly magazine FOCUS reported in an interview with him to be published on Sunday.
"I can't imagine the Bundestag would give a majority to a policy that would entail unlimited joint liability for Germany. As a Member of the Parliament, I couldn't agree to that," the report quoted him as saying.
Mr. Westerwelle also stressed his opposition to expand the rule of the ESM arguing that giving a banking incense to the bailout fund would violate the German constitution.
The Federal government can't agree to joint liability for Europe's debt or to liability for the unknown. This also applies to the proposal currently under discussion to give the ESM a banking license," he added.
