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"Despite or even because of Brexit, European integration remains
one of the best ideas that Europeans had in the 20th century,"
Schaeuble said in a letter, seen by Reuters on Tuesday and sent
to lawmakers from Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives and
the co-governing Social Democrats (SPD).
Germany and France now had to work closely together and pull in
the same direction to strengthen cooperation in the soon-to-be
27-member bloc, the veteran politician said, urging all euro
zone governments to further implement structural reforms, reduce
debt and make their budgets more sustainable.
"Germany advocates a steady implementation of these (fiscal)
agreements and is also ready to more effectively prevent future
crises and further deepen the monetary union," he said.
"The rule for this is simple and convincing: To set the right
incentives and avoid non-sustainable developments, risks and
liabilities must be at the same level and in one hand."
French President Emmanuel Macron has said Europe must complete
an imperfect single currency through the creation of a joint
euro zone finance minister who would oversee a pooled budget for
investments and transfers intended to help member states cushion
downturns.
(Reporting by Michael Nienaber; Editing by Madeline Chambers)
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