Germany says it will stand behind euro

BERLIN, Dec. 11 (UPI) -- German finance minister Wolfgang Schauble said Germany would stand behind the euro, despite its opposition to a joint European bond issuance.

"All European countries are determined to keep this European currency stable, and we have the means to do it," Schauble said, The Wall Street Journal reported Saturday.

Schauble said, "Sometimes it takes crises so that Europe moves forward. In this crisis, Europe will find steps toward further unification."

The eurozone shares a common currency, but each of the 16 countries that use the euro has independent fiscal responsibilities.

Schauble said it was too early to tell if fiscal integration was the correct course of action, however, IHS Global Insight chief economist Nariman Behravesh said, "If Germany is willing to go down that road, it's a big plus."

Since the European Union extended a $93 billion emergency loan to Ireland, finance ministers have discussed increasing the size of the emergency fund.

Luxembourg premier Jean-Claude Juncker called for a joint bond issuance, then called German "un-European" for rejecting the proposal. Investors and finance ministers worry the EU will next have to bail out Portugal and after that Spain, a far larger economy.

But Schauble said, "There will be no domino effect, because we will defend the common currency."