Merkel: EU will not 'abandon' any member states

The German Chancellor Angela Merkel has said no European Union member will be "abandoned".

She was speaking ahead of an EU summit set to be dominated by the euro crisis.

Ireland, last month, became the second eurozone member after Greece to seek a bailout.

The fear now is that rising borrowing costs could force other countries in the Eurozone, such as Spain and Portugal, to follow suit.

Ms Merkel told Parliament that no one in Europe will be abandoned and while certain members faced an uphill task in repairing their public finances, she remained confident that the single currency would survive.