‘Dangerous tone’ in euro debate, warns minister

Published on 07/08/2012 00:00

Arguments about European policy are taking on a “very dangerous” tone as worries mount about the future of the euro, Germany’s foreign minister claimed yesterday.

Guido Westerwelle’s comments came after Italian prime minister Mario Monti warned over the weekend of tensions that “bear the traits of a psychological dissolution of Europe”. On Sunday, a member of one of the parties in the German coalition also argued Greece must leave the euro this year.

“The tone is very dangerous. We must take care not to talk Europe down,” Mr Westerwelle said He added that attempts to grab domestic political attention “cannot be the yardstick for our action in any European country, including Germany – the situation in Europe is too serious for that.”

Politicians from the Christian Social Union, the Bavaria-only sister party to chancellor Angela Merkel’s Christian Democrats, have made particularly hardline comments in recent days.

Markus Soeder, the state’s finance minister and a CSU member, called in an interview for Greece to leave the eurozone.

“An example must be made of Athens [to show] the eurozone can show its teeth,” Mr Soeder said. “Further help to Greece is like pouring water into the desert.”

Mr Monti, who leads a government of technocrats, said governments had to “educate” their parliaments as they try to reach agreements on the eurozone’s future.