LUXEMBOURG/Athens (Reuters) - officials of the finances of the largest economies in the euro area gathered to discuss the crisis Friday, Greece debt and Athens denied a media report that he was considering leaving the block.
Jean-Claude Juncker, leader of the Group of Finance Ministers of the euro area, said Ministers of Germany, France, Italy and Spain were present at the meeting at Luxembourg. He said that there is a wide debate of Greece and other international economic issues.
Juncker was denied a report in Spiegel Online Germany magazine that the interviews were held to discuss the possibility, raised by Athens, Greece, withdrawal of the 17-Member eurozone, and the idea of the restructuring of sovereign debt of the Greece 327 billion euros ($470 billion).
"We have not discussed the output of the Greece of the euro area." It is a stupid idea. "It is in no way, it is an avenue that we would never", he told journalists.
"We do not want to have euro area explodes without reason." "We were excluding the option of restructuring, which is heavily discussed in certain areas of the financial markets..."
But Juncker said that a meeting of all finance ministers may 16 euro-zone would discuss whether the Greece required one more plan economic, the EUR 110 billion rescue plan which he obtained from the European Union and the Monetary Fund International in May last year. It was not specified.
Greek Finance Minister George Papaconstantinou attended interviews Luxembourg, said his Ministry of finance. He added that the Greece clings to the repair of its finances and his return to economic growth.
"The Minister has been invited to share the economic evolution in Greece (on issues including)," the Ministry said. "It is clear that at this meeting it was never discussed or posed as a problem if the Greece would remain in the euro area".
Luxembourg talks participated also by the President of the Central Bank European, Jean-Claude Trichet and Olli Rehn, European Commissioner for economic and Monetary Affairs, said Juncker.
FALL OF THE EURO
Earlier in the day, the euro fell 1% against the dollar and the cost of insuring Greek debt against default was cited to a record in response to the Spiegel report.
"The Government raised the possibility of leaving the euro and reintroduction of its own currency," Spiegel said without quoting its sources.
Despite his international bailout, Greece, who joined the eurozone in 2001, was able to reduce its budget deficit as quickly as expected in a deep recession. It has been increasing taxes and slashing spending, but still suffers from tax evasion, corruption and lack of economic competitiveness.
Financial markets have been speculating for months that Athens will be finally restructuring its debt and with Greek political will of more austerity from flag, some politicians have been suggesting a "soft" restructuring which could involve extension of the deadlines on the obligations of the country.
Output in the euro area could help the economy in the long term. The Greece would be able to reduce interest rates and have its own weak currency would boost exports and tourism.
But there was no legal procedure to leave the area and the risks and immediate process - the Greece costs are subject to Bank panics, and around the region, banks could be damaged, means that the Government is likely to fight hard to avoid this option.
Although the taxpayers in the rich States of the eurozone as the Germany become more and more reluctant to finance low States of the euro, Governments award monetary union as one of the major political achievements of Europe. The EU is negotiating a rescue with the Portugal plan, the third State is saved after the Greece and the Ireland.
An official of the German Government said Reuters Friday that output Greek of the euro area "is not provided and was not provided," while a spokesman for the Department of Austrian Finance, stated that a breakdown of the block would be "absolutely unthinkable."
Spiegel quoted what he said is a German Ministry of finance paper internal that German Finance Minister Wolfgang Sch?uble took with him to Luxembourg, which has warned that a Greek exit "lead to a significant depreciation of the currency against the euro" and increasing levels of debt of the Greece to 200 per cent gross domestic product. Its debt is officially expected to climb 153% of GDP this year.
(Other reports by Jan Strupczewski and Luke Baker Brussels, Andreas Rinke, Matthias Sobolewski and Noah Barkin in Berlin, Lefteris Papadimas in the Athens area offices and euro;) Written by Andrew Torchia; (editing by Tim Pearce)
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