President Klaus calls EU summit on crisis "useless"

CzechNews
12. 2. 2009 8:30
An informal meeting of EU leaders on economic downturn to be held on March 1
Mirek Topolánek
Mirek Topolánek | Foto: Reuters

Prague - Czech Prime Minister and European Council President Mirek Topolánek announced Wednesday that a special EU meeting on the economic crisis will take place in Brussels on 1 March.

The decision to hold the extra economy summit comes amid concern of the Czechs over resurgent national protectionism.

The meeting will address the steps taken by individual EU member states to shield themselves from the economic crisis. The Czech EU presidency wants to draft a more common policy that would withstand the financial storm.

According to Czech finance minister Miroslav Kalousek protectionism represents the biggest risk at the moment.  

The Czech government was alarmed by the French massive bail-out announced by president Sarkozy this week. France plans to provide eur 6.5 billion as loans to the French carmakers which are in exchange obliged to keep the French plants open.

President Sarkozy's call on French carmakers to relocate their production to France has alarmed the Czech government.

Czech president Václav Klaus said that the informal meeting of the EU leaders is "useless". In a seminar in Paris where he was invited by the French version the the U.S. Foreign Policy magazine he said that "one summit ending at 4 a.m. will not bring any rational solution".

In the meantime, German Chancellor Angela Merkel criticized Thursday the French bail-out, arguing such a step is against the EU regulations.

 

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