Enda Kenny with Mario Monti, Italy’s prime minister, center, and Jean-Claude Juncker, Luxembourg’s prime minister, during the European Leaders summit in Brussels.
According to a statement issued at 4am, eurozone leaders pledged to “examine the situation of the Irish financial sector with the view of further improving the sustainability of the well-performing adjustment programme.”
Following intensive negotiations, first at official level and then at heads of government level, it was agreed that the EU’s permanent bailout mechanism could be used to directly recapitalise eurozone banks.
This had been a key demand of the Spanish and other governments, including Ireland, in the run up to this week’s crisis summit. Speaking as he left the European Council building, Mr Kenny described the new deal as a seismic shift in EU policy, and said it would allow Ireland to re-engineer its overall debt level, which would reduce the burden on Irish taxpayers.
Ireland Secures A Deal in Principle To Alleviate The Country’s Debt Burden (RTE)
EU Leaders Ease Debt-Crisis Rules on Spain in Merkel Retreat (Bloomberg)
(Jock Fistick/Bloomberg)
