Joint package will not be ‘miracle cure’ for bloc’s ills

GERMANY and France have begun working on a joint package to stem the eurozone debt crisis, but it will not be a “miracle cure” for the bloc’s ills, Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman said yesterday.

Merkel hosted French President Nicolas Sarkozy for talks on Sunday evening, and at a joint press conference, they promised to unveil a comprehensive new package for the eurozone by the end of October. Both leaders refused to provide details on what the package would contain.

“The German and French governments are convinced this will be a contribution to the eurozone winning back confidence and its capacity to act — and I do mean a contribution, not the ‘miracle cure’ everyone keeps asking for,” said Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert.