Merkel, Hollande agree on aim to keep Greece in euro

Page last updated at 12:47 GMT, Tuesday, May 15, 2012 - 17:47 EST

AFP:

German chancellor Angela Merkel (L) shows the way to new French president Francois Hollande in Berlin

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French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel stressed their desire to keep the eurozone together on Tuesday in key talks just hours after France's new leader was inaugurated.

With all eyes on their first-ever talks, the two leaders also vowed that the two European powerhouses were aware of their responsibilities and ready to help find solutions to the eurozone crisis.

Hollande, the newly inaugurated French Socialist, arrived late for his first talks with Merkel after his plane was apparently struck by lightning and had to return to Paris where he changed aircraft.

Hanging over the meeting was the grim news from Athens, which is now set to hold another round of elections likely on June 17 after efforts to form a government after inclusive polls foundered, setting up yet another month of brinkmanship at the crippled heart of the eurozone.

But the eurozone's two biggest economies want Greece to stay in the single currency, Merkel said a joint press conference with Hollande.

Read the whole story: AFP