Sarkozy Says Euro Region Ready to Help Greece If Necessary

By Jonathan Stearns and Maria Petrakis

March 8 (Bloomberg) -- French President Nicolas Sarkozy said the euro region is ready to rescue Greece should the government struggle to fund its budget deficit, arguing that the country is “under attack” from so-called speculators.

“I want to be very clear: if it were necessary, the states of the euro zone would fulfill their commitments,” he said in Paris yesterday after a meeting with Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou. “There can be no doubt in this regard.” While Greece doesn’t need assistance right now, “we have measures, we are ready, we are determined,” he said.

Sarkozy’s comments are among the strongest by an EU leader to signal the bloc would bail out Greece as they try to warn investors off making further bets against the euro and Greek bonds. Papandreou’s government last week passed a further round of austerity measures and sold 5 billion euros ($6.8 billion) in government debt. Europe’s single currency has dropped 8 percent in the past three months. Read more