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Macron wants a giant leap forward in European cooperation,
pushing for the creation of a euro zone finance minister and
parliament, as well as a stand alone budget for the currency
bloc to cushion economic shocks and head off future crises.
The French leader is running up against resistance in Berlin
despite conciliatory public signals from German Chancellor
Angela Merkel.
Her finance minister has proposed transforming the euro zone's
rescue fund, the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), into a
fully fledged EMF that would have more powers to support
vulnerable member states.
"We should head toward a European Monetary Fund but this should
in no way be mixed up with a (euro zone) budget," Macron said
during a visit to Athens.
Macron praised Greece's austerity reforms and reiterated his
call for an easing of the Greek debt burden.
Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos said Greece supported
France's proposals for a closer euro zone. He said the ESM
should be reformed and replace the International Monetary Fund
in Europe.
"We respect the IMF, but we can manage better with an
organization which was set up to have a European mentality and
understand the euro zone’s special features," Pavlopoulos told
Macron.
Euro zone governments in June approved another 11th-hour credit
line for Greece worth nearly $10 billion after the IMF said it
would in principle join the country's current bailout having
hesitated for two years.
Macron helped bridge differences between the fund and some euro
zone member states, including Germany.
(Reporting by Michel Rose and Renee Maltezou; Writing by Richard
Lough; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg)
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