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Key European leaders pledged at a meeting with U.S. President Barack Obama Monday that they will push for closer economic integration1 of the 17-nation eurozone to help resolve the continent's burgeoning2 debt crisis.
European Council President Herman Van Rompuy and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso called for uniform, binding3 controls over government spending in the countries that use the euro currency. Mr. Van Rompuy said a "roadmap" spelling out a new eurozone economic plan would be presented to a European Union summit in early December.
Barroso, speaking after a White House summit in Washington with President Obama, said European leaders "are determined4 to overcome the current difficulties." Debt-ridden Greece, Ireland and and Portugal have already been forced to secure international bailouts, while Italy, Spain and other countries are facing sharply increased borrowing costs to finance their governments.
Mr. Obama said the U.S. is prepared "to do our part" to help Europe solve its debt crisis, which he described as being "of huge importance to our economy." But he did not spell out any specific actions the U.S. might take.
A new report says the eurozone's economy is falling into a recession.
The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development said it expects the eurozone economy will shrink by an annualized rate of one percent in the last three months of the year, and by another four-tenths of one percent in the first quarter of 2012. The OECD, a policy forum5 for 34 advanced economies, said the European Central Bank needs to intervene decisively to stabilize6 the continent's debt crisis.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said the European debt crisis has "created a headwind for much of the year" on the sluggish7 U.S. economy. He said the U.S. government believes it is "critical" for European leaders to "move forcefully" to resolve the debt issue and that the eurozone nations have the financial capacity to deal with it.
As debt worries in Italy, Spain and elsewhere roil8 international financial markets, the continent's economic leaders - Germany and France - are starting to negotiate a new fiscal9 agreement that would enforce budget discipline across the eurozone. That is something individual countries have long resisted, as they fear the loss of sovereign control.
The effects of the debt crisis have been widespread. Belgium was forced to pay sharply higher interest rates on Monday, while the Italian Banking10 Association promoted a patriotic11 drive to get Italians to buy government bonds to try to keep interest rates from spiraling out of control.
Credit rating agency Moody's warned in a statement Monday that while it believes there will not be widespread defaults in the eurozone, the probability of multiple debt defaults is "no longer negligible."
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1
integration
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n.一体化,联合,结合 | |
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2
burgeoning
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adj.迅速成长的,迅速发展的v.发芽,抽枝( burgeon的现在分词 );迅速发展;发(芽),抽(枝) | |
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3
binding
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有约束力的,有效的,应遵守的 | |
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4
determined
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adj.坚定的;有决心的 | |
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5
forum
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n.论坛,讨论会 | |
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6
stabilize
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vt.(使)稳定,使稳固,使稳定平衡;vi.稳定 | |
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7
sluggish
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adj.懒惰的,迟钝的,无精打采的 | |
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8
roil
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v.搅浑,激怒 | |
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9
fiscal
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adj.财政的,会计的,国库的,国库岁入的 | |
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10
banking
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n.银行业,银行学,金融业 | |
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11
patriotic
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adj.爱国的,有爱国心的 | |
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