Sarkozy, Merkel 'determined' to save Greek bailout plan

Germany's Angela Merkel and France's Nicolas Sarkozy are “determined” to implement the EU bailout plan for Greece. That was the outcome of an emergency phone call between the two chiefs of state ahead of a G20 summit tomorrow. The European leaders are determined to push their view that a Greek referendum on a new bailout deal makes more necessary than ever to implement last week's EU summit decisions.

"France and Germany are determined to ensure, with their European partners, the full implementation in the quickest time frame, the decisions adopted at the (Oct. 27) summit, which are today more important than ever," Sarkozy's office said in a statement.

The meeting, which comes just before a Nov 3-4 gathering of G20 heads of states in Cannes, on the French Riviera, was hastily arranged for tomorrow afternoon after European leaders were taken by surprise by Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou's decision.

"France and Germany are convinced that this accord will enable Greece to restore lasting growth," the statement said. "In consultation with our European partners and the IMF, (we) would like a road map to be quickly agreed to ensure the implementation of this deal."

The statement made no mention of the Greek referendum. Sarkozy is also due to meet his top ministers, including the prime minister, finance minister and foreign minister as well as the central bank governor, at 1700 local time (1600 GMT) to discuss the latest developments and Paris' plan of action.

Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert said the German chancellor and French president "agreed, together with their European partners, to guarantee the full and swift implementation of the summit decisions, which are today more necessary than ever".

"Germany and France are convinced that this agreement will enable Greece to return to sustainable growth," Seibert said in a statement, adding that they had agreed to hold a round of consultations with European institutions and the International Monetary Fund, as well as a meeting with the Greek government, in Cannes tomorrow.