Chancellor Angela Merkel has described Greece's plans to get its economy back on an even keel as "a remarkable effort". The German government is optimistic that Greece will be able to resolve its debt crisis without external assistance, she said, and declared war on speculators.

For this no German financial assistance will be required, declared the Chancellor at a press conference in Berlin after talks with her Greek opposite number Georgios Papandreou. The Greek prime minister did not request any assistance of this sort in any case.
 
Angela Merkel also quoted the EU Commission, the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank, all of which deemed the Greek austerity measures a courageous step in the right direction.
 

Greece’s new debt is four times as high as the 3% permitted in the European Union’s Stability Pact. To tackle the crisis Georgios Papandreou has put together a package of cuts, which should generate savings of 4.8 billion euros. The European Commission had previously demanded that Greece reduce its budget deficit by a minimum of four percentage points this year.
 
Joint government commission
 
Germany will stand by Greece, because friends are there to help one another in times of crisis, as the Chancellor put it. Germany and Greece will be stepping up cooperation in many fields. A joint statement also mentioned the environment and climate protection, research, and disaster risk management.
 
Angela Merkel and Georgios Papandreou also agreed to set up a German-Greek government commission, which is to foster competitive business in the two countries, particularly in the fields of the environment and climate protection, energy, and disaster risk management.
 
A common front against speculators
 
The Chancellor criticised speculators hoping to profit from Greece’s crisis. "We must put an end to the speculators’ game,” she declared. It is completely unacceptable that investors are hoping for the bankruptcy of the Greek state. Although it is technically difficult, politics must play the first fiddle.
 
Together, Greece and Germany will be working for a solution within the European Commission. Angela Merkel intends to lobby within the G20 and in the USA to stem speculation against states with the help of loan default insurance.