Context
France and Germany agreed Thursday to changes to the European Union treaties to help govern the region. The two countries will submit a joint proposal before the EU summit on Dec 9. The proposal calls for stringent budget regulations in the euro zone countries, and suggests amendment to the treaty to insert powers to change national budgets in failing EU nations.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the proposal favored greater powers to regulate EU budgets and included the right to take corrupt government to the European Court of Justice. The EU faces a daunting road to recovery. Economic woes continue to plague Greece and Portugal, with German bonds falling to their lowest level in nearly a month.
The French President Nicolas Sarkozy along with Merkel also met with newly instated Italian Prime Minister, Mario Monti to discuss the debt crisis. They expressed their confidence in PM Monti to deal with the economic challenge.
