European Financial Stabilization Facility

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This article contradicts the information from the article European Stability Mechanism . Please take part in the discussion and remove this module if necessary.
The EFSF logo

The European Financial Stability Facility (short EFSF , English European Financial Stability Facility ) is a public limited company ( société anonyme ) under Luxembourg law with registered office in Luxembourg (city) and serves as a temporary stabilization mechanism between the Member States of the euro zone . It was founded on June 7, 2010 and was operational from August 4, 2010.

Since July 1, 2013, the EFSF has largely been replaced by the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), which finances all new programs; since then the EFSF has only implemented the earlier programs. The current director (CEO) is the German Klaus Regling .

The EFSF is an institution that is independent of the European Union and is based on an international treaty between the member states of the euro zone. Its purpose is to "ensure financial stability in the entire euro area". The EFSF is thus part of the package of measures generally known as the “ euro rescue package ”. It is secured with guarantees from the euro states in the amount of 750 billion euros and has a lending capacity of around 440 billion euros.

legal framework

In the Maastricht Treaty , in which monetary union was decided in 1992, financial support for over-indebted member states should be excluded. For this reason, the Stability and Growth Pact imposed specific deficit and debt limits on the member states, and a strict no-bailout clause was explicitly agreed, which prohibited the Union or individual member states from being liable for the liabilities of other member states . This should guarantee the individual states' own responsibility and financial discipline. In this way, the moral hazard problem should be prevented from the expectation of member states that if their own budgetary and debt discipline is insufficient, they can hope that other states will repay their debts. However, this Stability and Growth Pact has now been violated by the states more than 60 times (including Germany) without the sanctions contractually agreed for this case being adopted even once. At the beginning of 2010, Greece and other euro zone countries slipped into debt crises and the euro crisis began. As a result, the euro zone countries saw themselves compelled to adopt the European Financial Stabilization Mechanism (EFSM) as a provisional stabilization mechanism at a special EU summit in May 2010 in order to contain a self-reinforcing crisis with the risk of national bankruptcies . However, as the volume of these measures was not sufficient to contain the crisis, the European Council decided in December 2010 to replace the EFSM with a more extensive stability mechanism, the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) , which is to remain in force after 2013.

Relationship to the no-bailout clause

The problem with the European Stability Mechanism is its relationship to the non-bailiff clause in Art. 125 TFEU , which excludes any liability of member states or the European Union as a whole for the debts of other member states. In order to justify the provisional stabilization mechanism, Article 122 TFEU was initially cited, which allows financial aid to be given to a member state if it is "faced with difficulties or seriously threatened by serious difficulties due to natural disasters or extraordinary events beyond its control" . At the proposal of the non-euro country Great Britain, it was decided that only the other euro countries would be liable for loans to countries that are members of the euro zone . On the other hand, loans can be taken out as balance of payments support for non-euro states, for which all member states of the EU are liable.

With regard to the ESM, which is the successor structure of the EFSF, the European Court of Justice denied a violation of Art. 125 TFEU in its judgment in Case C-370/12 Thomas Pringle v Government of Ireland, Ireland, The Attorney General:

“The prohibition on the ECB and the central banks of the Member States, bodies and institutions of the Union and the Member States to grant overdrafts or other credit facilities or to purchase debt instruments directly from them is not circumvented by the ESM. This prohibition is specifically aimed at the ECB and the central banks of the Member States. If one or more Member States provide financial assistance to another Member State directly or through the ESM, this does not fall under the aforementioned prohibition. The "no bailout clause", according to which the Union or a Member State does not assume or be liable for the obligations of another Member State, is not intended to prohibit the Union and the Member States from providing any form of financial support to another Member State. Rather, it seeks to ensure that Member States maintain sound budgetary policies by ensuring that Member States remain subject to the logic of the market when they are indebted. It does not therefore prohibit one or more Member States from granting financial assistance to a Member State which remains liable for its own debts to its creditors, provided that the conditions attached are such as to induce sound budgetary policies. However, the ESM and the participating member states are not liable for the obligations of the recipient member state of stability support and do not stand up for them in the sense of the "no bailout clause". "

Actions before the German Federal Constitutional Court

Several lawsuits were brought before the Federal Constitutional Court in Germany against the Stabilization Mechanism Act , through which participation in the EFSF was decided . The lawsuit brought by the scientists Joachim Starbatty , Wilhelm Hankel , Karl Albrecht Schachtschneider , Wilhelm Nölling and the manager Dieter Spethmann as well as the lawsuit brought by the politician Peter Gauweiler attracted particular attention . The lawsuits were directed against both the German approval of the EFSF and the Monetary Union Financial Stability Act , which regulates German participation in the aid loans for Greece. These loans to Greece preceded the establishment of the EFSF, but functioned in a similar way to that provided for in the EFSF. The lawsuit was accepted for decision and the hearing took place in July 2011. The plaintiffs argued u. a. citing the non-bailout clause that the German Bundestag had not been sufficiently involved and that the European Union would become a "liability and transfer company" through aid to Greece.

On September 7, 2011, the Federal Constitutional Court rejected the constitutional complaints made by the scientists and MP Gauweiler. The amount of the guarantees has not exceeded any upper limit. This would only be the case if the budgetary autonomy of the Bundestag “were not only restricted for a significant period of time, but practically ran completely empty”. In its judgment, however, the court strengthened the participation rights of the German Bundestag. The judges tied future financial aid to the requirement that the budget committee of the German Bundestag must approve every new rescue package. On October 27, 2011, the Federal Constitutional Court issued an interim order, according to which parliament may not delegate its responsibility to the so-called 9-member special committee (committee according to Section 3 (3 ) of the Stabilization Mechanism Act ).

In an organ dispute , the Federal Constitutional Court ruled on February 28, 2012 that Section 3  (3) of the Stabilization Mechanism Act violated the rights of members of the Bundestag under Article 38 (1) sentence 2 of the Basic Law, “insofar as it does not only apply to purchases of government bonds that European Financial Stabilization Facility operates in the secondary market ”.

background

Establishment of the provisional stabilization mechanism

The establishment of a provisional stabilization mechanism was decided in the course of the euro crisis at a special meeting of the European Council of Finance Ministers on the night of May 9-10, 2010. This was preceded by the Greek financial crisis , which on March 25, 2010 led to an emergency plan in which Greece was granted bilateral loan guarantees from the other euro countries and the International Monetary Fund totaling around 110 billion euros. However, shortly after this emergency plan, interest rates for the economically weaker countries rose sharply again, so that new measures appeared necessary.

The German government under Angela Merkel initially proposed the exclusion of over-indebted states from the European Monetary Union and the establishment of a state insolvency order , i.e. a regulated procedure through which an over-indebted state would not have to repay part of its debts. However, both proposals were rejected by other Member States. After US Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner urged his G7 colleagues to find a quick solution on May 7, 2010, Germany finally voted at the summit on 9/10. May 2010 to set up a "stabilization mechanism". This came about, mainly at French insistence and under massive time pressure, within a weekend, as those involved wanted to approve it before the Tokyo Stock Exchange opened on May 10, 2010 at 2 a.m. European time. In Germany, which was on May 9, 2010 at 18:00 state election in North Rhine-Westphalia ended. The stabilization mechanism was based on Art. 122 TFEU , according to which the Council “under certain circumstances has a member state that is“ faced with difficulties or is seriously threatened by serious difficulties due to natural disasters or exceptional events beyond its control ” Conditions for financial assistance from the Union ”.

The day after the decision, the risk premiums for government bonds from crisis countries such as Greece and Spain initially fell. Silvio Berlusconi said: “If the house is on fire, it doesn't matter where the water comes from. I am very satisfied with this evening, France and Italy prevailed. "

The following night, at another special meeting of EU finance ministers in the Council for Economic and Financial Affairs, further decisions were taken on the details. For the coming into force of the stabilization mechanism, corresponding laws were passed in parallel in the individual euro countries; on May 21, 2010, the German Bundestag passed the law on the assumption of guarantees within the framework of a European stabilization mechanism . A blockade occurred through Slovakia , where the EFSF became the campaign topic for the parliamentary elections on June 12, 2010 . On July 16, 2010, however, the new Slovak government under Iveta Radičová approved the rescue package.

In the provisional version, the European Stabilization Mechanism consisted of guaranteed loans totaling 750 billion euros, which are fed from three different "pots":

  • 60 billion euros can be made available to member states in a debt crisis from the budget of the European Union .
  • A further 440 billion comes from the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), a special purpose vehicle that takes out bonds on the capital market for which the member states of the euro zone with differently high shares of the euro zone are jointly liable; In fact, the EFSF is thus a bank with limited guarantor liability, which does not draw its (credit) capital from (savings) deposits, but rather from (corporate) bonds. The respective share is based on the level of the capital share of the states in the European Central Bank , which in turn results from the population and half of the gross domestic product of the member states. For Germany, this results in a stake of around 28%, which initially corresponds to an obligation of up to 123.2 billion euros. In the event of unforeseen and unavoidable need, the guarantee authorization can - with the consent of the budget committee of the German Bundestag - be exceeded by 20 percent, which would result in a maximum obligation of around 148 billion euros for Germany.
  • The International Monetary Fund (IMF) can provide additional loans of around 250 billion euros . Among the euro zone member states of the IMF, Germany with 5.98%, France with 4.94%, Italy with 3.24%, the Netherlands with 2.37%, Belgium with 2.12%, Spain with 1.40% % Capital share.

In any case, these support services are loans ; the affected country has to repay it later. The interest rates agreed under the ESM should be significantly lower than those that the country would have to pay on the free market. To this end, the country is agreeing a program of economic reforms with the EU and the IMF , through which future debt crises should be prevented.

The Provisional Stability Mechanism would remain in force until June 30, 2013.

Structure and resources

EFSF shareholders are the member states of the Eurogroup . Its governing body is a board of directors consisting of one representative from each state. On July 1, 2010, the German Klaus Regling , who had headed the Directorate General for Economy and Finance of the European Commission from 2001 to 2008, was appointed managing director . After 90% of the member states had ratified the establishment of the EFSF, it became fully operational on August 4, 2010. The full ratification of the last member states ( Belgium , Slovenia , Slovakia and Austria ) followed by the beginning of December 2010.

The German Finance Agency , which organizes the issuing of the bonds, acts as the service provider for the EFSF . The loans are passed on to the financially troubled member states, which can no longer finance themselves on the capital market at affordable interest rates. Any help, however, must be preceded by a unanimous decision by the Board of Directors, i.e. all member states of the Eurogroup . The credit terms on which the EFSF passes on the credit to the Member States concerned are to be drawn up by the European Commission . In particular, this can also include requirements for budget consolidation measures.

In order to receive the top rating - rating code AAA - from the rating agencies for the bonds to be issued by the EFSF , the loans are 120 percent secured. Each country in the euro zone is therefore liable for individual issues for 20 percent more than its share according to the ECB capital key. The reason for this is that of the 16 euro countries only six had an AAA rating at the time the EFSF was founded. Without the overcollateralisation, an average rating would not have resulted in the top grade AAA, which would have made borrowing by the EFSF more expensive. After it was determined that even a twenty percent overcollateralisation was not enough to achieve an AAA rating for the full loan amount of 440 billion euros, it was decided at the end of March 2011 to expand the EFSF again. This expansion, which also increased the guarantees granted by Germany, was approved by the Bundestag on September 29, 2011 with a large majority. The Slovakia rejected the reform as one of the 17 countries in the euro zone 11 October 2011 first off, causing the expansion was initially stopped. In a second vote on October 13, 2011, however, a majority of MPs from government parties and the opposition voted in favor of the reform.

On January 25, 2011, the EFSF issued its first bond with a volume of 5 billion euros, a term of 5 years and an initial yield of 2.89%. The volume achieved was made available to Ireland. In August 2012, the EFSF was able to borrow at negative interest rates .

At a special summit of the European Council on July 21, 2011, a reform of the EFSF was resolved, through which it can also buy up government bonds from over-indebted states on the secondary market, if the 17 member states of the euro zone agree.

The German Bundestag voted on October 26, 2011, the day of the so-called Euro, to increase the effectiveness of the EFSF, to multiply its effect to at least one trillion euros through a credit lever and thus to be able to provide more money to fight the debt crisis -Crisis summit in Brussels, with the votes of all political groups - except those of the LINKE - a joint motion for a resolution on the euro rescue fund EFSF The basis for the vote was the Brussels agreements of the finance ministers on how the "lending capacity of the EFSF" could be maximized.

On November 26, 2011, Der Spiegel wrote : “According to SPIEGEL information, the EFSF rescue package is much smaller. Reason: the reluctance of donors. Paris and Berlin are now working on a new euro treaty on the crisis. ”“ The attempt to leverage the remaining EFSF funds of 250 billion euros to this amount is about to fail. At the meeting of the Eurogroup at the beginning of next week, EFSF boss Klaus Regling therefore wants to present two variants to the finance ministers. This is only about doubling, or at most tripling, the remaining funds - that is to say to 500 or at most 750 billion euros. "

Participation of the Member States

The states are involved in the financing both through guarantees to the EFSF and through their share in the International Monetary Fund. In no case, however, will additional funds flow directly: the EFSF guarantee can only be called if the EFSF itself is not able to repay its borrowings (which is only the case if the member states supported by the EFSF became insolvent despite their help). The IMF loan, in turn, is paid from the regular budget of the IMF, in which the EU member states - like the other IMF member states, in particular the USA as the main financier - participate in the amount of their respective share in the IMF.

Grants

Before the transfer of responsibility to the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), the EFSF granted loans to Greece, Ireland and Portugal.

Greece

The EFSF was not yet involved in the first Greece aid package. This support was provided exclusively by the EU and the International Monetary Fund and the like. a. in the form of bilateral loans and guarantees.

Up to December 31, 2014, the EFSF pledged EUR 144.6 billion for the second aid package to Greece, of which EUR 133.6 billion had already been called up by December 31, 2013.

Ireland

In November 2010 Ireland was pledged a total of 85 billion euros, of which 17.7 billion was available through the EFSF as of December 8, 2013. By November 22, 2013, 15.4 billion of this had already been called.

Portugal

In May 2011, 78 billion euros in aid were pledged to Portugal. These consisted of 26 billion each from the EFSF, EFSM and IMF. Of the 26 billion available to the EFSF by May 18, 2014, 24.8 billion had already been drawn by November 22, 2013.

criticism

Germany

Criticism of state institutions

In an official statement dated September 19, 2011, the Bundesbank warned: “[...] With the decisions of the heads of state and government of the euro area and the EU institutions of July 21, 2011, changes were again made to the reform projects at key points. It was decided to significantly expand the toolbox of the EFSF (and the future ESM). [...] With these resolutions, another big step is taken in the direction of joint liability and less discipline by the capital markets, without, in return, the control and influence on national financial policies being noticeably increased. "

More criticism

The introduction of the European stabilization mechanism was criticized, among others, by the Ifo Institute for Economic Research , whose president Hans-Werner Sinn warned that the rescue package for Germany was “an incalculable adventure” and “a sure brake on growth”. He justified this, among other things, with the fact that Germany would de facto take over the guarantee for the debts of the other euro states and that this would increase the refinancing costs for the German state. He advocates the controlled termination of the billion-dollar transfers to countries in need and criticizes the Federal Government and the Bundestag for failing to demand clear credit terms to weaken the euro and endanger the work of European unification.

The chairman of the Regulatory Policy Foundation and the Center for European Politics , Lüder Gerken , criticizes the fact that the stability mechanism does not grasp the core of the problem of the southern European countries: This does not lie in the national debt alone, but in the indebtedness of the economy as a whole due to the ongoing current account deficit . This can only be countered by real economic reforms. Such reforms are foreseen in the agreed mechanisms by making the granting of financial aid subject to "strict conditions"; Gerken points out, however, that in practice these requirements cannot be enforced with the necessary rigor, since the other euro countries can hardly refuse financial aid to a member state at risk of insolvency and their negotiating position is therefore weakened. Gerken sees in this delay of necessary internal reforms the danger of a permanent use of the stability pact by some countries and regards the measures as - not intended, but accepted - way into the "debt union".

In particular, the FDP member of the Bundestag and finance politician Frank Schäffler vehemently criticized the rescue package. Among other things, he accused the European Council of committing “collective legal violations” of the no-bailout clause and of striving for “economic centralization and the unlimited primacy of politics over the economy in the European Union” and a “monetary planned economy”. An FDP membership decision was prepared by him and other FDP politicians such as Burkhard Hirsch . The subsequent decision of December 2011, however, confirmed the course of the party leadership.

There is also criticism from some CSU politicians, such as the Bundestag member Peter Gauweiler , who do not want to support the Merkel government's plan.

The planned regulation is generally rejected by the Left Party , as the Left Party believes that state tax money is being unilaterally redistributed in favor of the international financial institutions.

The economist Max Otte criticized the planned European regulation for a stabilization mechanism to secure the euro and the position of Chancellor Angela Merkel : "Billionaires and oligarchs - these are the actors that we 'save'."

At the meeting of EU finance ministers and central bank chiefs in Wroclaw on September 17, 2011, Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann rejected the bond purchases by the European rescue fund EFSF. Weidmann denied the option of equipping the rescue fund with a banking license in order to get fresh money from the ECB for bond purchases on the grounds that the political independence of the ECB should not be used to finance national debt, "regardless of whether it was indirectly or directly" .

Thousands of citizens, including well-known people from science, politics and society, have come together in the non-partisan Citizens' Will to take action against the euro rescue policy.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b Finance ministers seal euro rescue mechanism . Mirror online. June 7, 2010. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
  2. ↑ Euro finance ministers seal 440 billion guarantee . Time online. June 8, 2010. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
  3. ↑ a b c d Eurogroup approves contracts to establish the special purpose vehicle . Federal Ministry of Finance. June 9, 2010. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
  4. ↑ Declaration by the Heads of State and Government of the European Union of February 11, 2010 and Declaration by the Heads of State and Government of the member states of the euro currency area of ​​March 25, 2010, both available at www.consilium.europa.eu.
  5. ↑ EFSF - Financial Statements, Management report and Auditor's report, December 31, 2011
  6. ^ Karlsruhe examines aid to Greece . Southgerman newspaper. July 5, 2011. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
  7. ↑ How solidary can Germany be? . tagesschau.de. July 5, 2011. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
  8. ^ Warning of a transfer union . Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. July 7, 2010. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
  9. ↑ Press release on the constitutional lawsuit against the rescue package for the euro . Action group social market economy. July 7, 2010. Archived from the original on January 6, 2012. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
  10. ^ Full text of the application . Action group social market economy. July 5, 2010. Archived from the original on January 6, 2012. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
  11. ↑ Acknowledgments to the donors and status of the lawsuit . Professor Dr. Wilhelm Hankel. Archived from the original on May 12, 2013. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
  12. ↑ Frederik Obermaier: Just went well again. In: sueddeutsche.de. September 7, 2011, accessed September 7, 2011 .
  13. ↑ David Böcking: Euro savers must dare to be more democratic. In: Spiegel Online. September 7, 2011, accessed September 7, 2011 .
  14. ↑ Federal Constitutional Court : Constitutional complaints against measures to aid Greece and the euro rescue package unsuccessful - no violation of the budgetary autonomy of the Bundestag. Press release No. 55/2011 of September 7, 2011. September 7, 2011, accessed on September 7, 2011 .
  15. ↑ Principles on the judgment of the Second Senate of September 7, 2011 (2 BvR 987/10, 2 BvR 1485/10, 2 BvR 1099/10) . Federal Constitutional Court. September 7, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
  16. ↑ BVerfG, decision of October 27, 2011 - 2 BvE 8/11 -. Retrieved August 23, 2012 .
  17. ↑ Principles on the judgment of the Second Senate of February 28, 2012 (2 BvE 8/11) . Federal Constitutional Court. February 28, 2012. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
  18. ↑ a b The final for the euro . Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. May 9, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
  19. ↑ IMF Reaches Staff-level Agreement with Greece on € 30 Billion Stand-By Arrangement ( English ) International Monetary Fund. May 2, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
  20. ↑ Sarkozy and Brown reject Merkel's exclusion idea . Handelsblatt. March 26, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
  21. ↑ a b We only have one shot . Mirror online. May 17, 2010. Retrieved June 27, 2012.
  22. ↑ Economic and Financial Affairs ( English , PDF; 64 kB) Council of the European Union. 9/10 May 2011. Retrieved June 30, 2012.
  23. ↑ "We will defend the euro" . Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. May 8, 2010. Retrieved June 30, 2012.
  24. ↑ Positive response to the rescue network on the stock exchanges . euronews. May 10, 2010. Retrieved June 30, 2012.
  25. ↑ EU rescue package works - for the time being . euronews. May 10, 2010. Retrieved June 30, 2012.
  26. ↑ New Slovak government paves the way for euro rescue funds. EurActiv network, July 22, 2010, archived from the original on July 27, 2010 ; accessed on April 12, 2019 (German, English).
  27. ↑ a b EU decides multi-billion pillar for the euro . Mirror online. May 10, 2010. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
  28. ↑ 148,000,000,000 euros have been decided . Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. May 21, 2010. Retrieved August 28, 2012.
  29. ↑ European Financial Stability Facility CEO Takes Office ( English ) European Financial Stability Facility. July 1, 2010. Retrieved September 11, 2012.
  30. ↑ European firefighter . Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. June 10, 2010. Retrieved September 11, 2012.
  31. ↑ Klaus Regling - Brussels' billionaire . Financial Times Germany. June 9, 2010. Archived from the original on June 11, 2010. Retrieved September 11, 2012.
  32. ↑ EFSF becomes fully operational ( English ) European Financial Stability Facility. August 4, 2010. Retrieved September 6, 2012.
  33. ↑ Belgium, Slovakia and Slovenia now full EFSF members ( English ) European Financial Stability Facility. December 3, 2010. Retrieved September 11, 2012.
  34. ↑ Focus Money , January 12, 2011: Debt crisis: Under what conditions does a country receive money?
  35. ↑ EFSF: Rating agencies assign top credit rating to EFSF from September 20, 2010
  36. ↑ Financial Times Deutschland , June 9, 2010: How the super rescue fund for the euro works ( Memento from June 11, 2010 in the Internet Archive )
  37. ↑ Euronews , June 8, 2010: The EU's emergency shield is in place .
  38. ↑ This is how the debate in the Bundestag went . In: Spiegel Online . September 29, 2011. Retrieved July 23, 2012.
  39. ^ The Slovak government breaks up on the euro sueddeutsche.de, October 11, 2011
  40. ↑ EU: Slovakia votes for the expansion of the euro rescue package. Die Zeit, October 13, 2011, archived from the original on January 19, 2012 ; accessed on April 11, 2019 .
  41. ↑ EFSF: EFSF places inaugural benchmark issue of January 25, 2011
  42. ↑ Handelsblatt August 21, 2012: "Rescue fund gets money for getting into debt"
  43. ^ Spiegel online , July 21, 2011: Sarkozy pushes the European Monetary Fund through .
  44. ↑ On this, Handelsblatt editor-in-chief Gabor Steingart: "... with those derivative super-instruments under whose use the American investment bank Lehman Brothers once collapsed"; quoted according to "HANDELSBLATT Morning Briefing" v. Oct. 27, 2011
  45. ↑ See “Preliminary Terms of Reference - Maximizing the EFSF's Existing Lending Capacity”. (PDF; 75 KB) unofficial German translation. Rheinische Post, October 23, 2011, archived from the original on January 18, 2012 ; accessed on April 11, 2019 .
  46. ↑ spiegel.de November 26, 2011: Euro lever clearly missed the trillion
  47. ↑ a b c d Lending operations. European Financial Stability Facility, November 22, 2013, accessed December 1, 2013 .
  48. ↑ Rescue package decided - Merkel blocked. tagesschau.de, November 28, 2010, accessed on August 24, 2012 .
  49. ↑ Background: An overview of the euro rescue packages , tagesschau.de, May 1, 2013, accessed on December 1, 2013
  50. ↑ billion euros for Portugal's banks. In: Süddeutsche Zeitung. June 4, 2012, Retrieved August 24, 2012 .
  51. ↑ bundesbank.de: Statement by Dr. Jens Weidmann, President of the Deutsche Bundesbank ( Memento from September 26, 2011 in the Internet Archive ), September 19, 2011
  52. ↑ Handelsblatt , May 20, 2010: "Wrong decision": Ifo Institute damn euro rescue package
  53. ↑ Süddeutsche Zeitung, April 2, 2011, No. 77, p. 24: Ticking time bomb, What Merkel and the Bundesbank are hiding: The rescue package will not save the euro - but it is burdening Germany with enormous risks
  54. ↑ Lüder Gerken , "A barrel without a bottom", FAZ from March 30, 2011.
  55. ↑ Orwellian EU ( Memento of June 9, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) Frank Schäffler's private blog, June 6, 2011
  56. ↑ focus.de: Member decision on the ESM rescue package: Euro rebels in the FDP failed
  57. ↑ Interview with Max Otte: Rescuing the euro is demagoguery focus.de (July 8, 2011)
  58. ↑ Bond purchases by the ECB: Bundesbank chief warns of billion-dollar risks spiegel.de (September 17, 2011)
  59. ↑ First and main signatory. In: Bündnis Bürgerwille. Retrieved February 1, 2013 .

Coordinates: 49 ° 38 '5 "  N , 6 ° 10' 5.9"  E