Crisis isn't over, but Europe is on right path: Merkel
Germany's chancellor has used a prime time television interview to defend her course on the eurozone. Angela Merkel said that while the crisis wasn't over and more work remained, Europe was on the right path.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel says the future course of the European Union will still be a major issue during next year's federal election campaign.
Speaking in a feature interview on public television on Sunday Merkel said the question of further solidarity with other EU states concerned citizens not just in Germany, but in also in every member of the 27-country bloc.
"For this reason next year's vote will also be about the situation in Europe and what expectations we have for Europe," the chancellor said.
Her personal vision and that of her center-right coalition, she said, was of a "stability union that can assert itself on the world stage."
Europe on the right path
She also stressed that Germany would demand strict controls and conditions for any future financial bailouts.
"Germany's strengths aren't unlimited and we as Europe face worldwide competition and we have to successfully compete, if we want to maintain our prosperity," she said.
Although the crisis still wasn't solved, the chancellor expressed confidence that the eurozone was “on the right path. More has been done in the past few months in Europe than in many years, but a lot still has to be done.”
The chancellor said she expected the Bundestag to approve an aid package for Spain's banking sector when lawmakers vote on the deal on Wednesday.
The chancellor wrapped up the interview by confirming that she intended to run for re-election next year, something she had previously announced last November.
