BRUSSELS – German Chancellor Angela Merkel has rejected calls for a multibillion-euro bailout plan for eastern European Union member states.
She says the situation is very different in each EU country and aid should be handled on a case-by-case basis. She adds that a one-size-fits-all bailout of poor eastern members is unwise.
Merkel told reporters during Sunday's summit of EU leaders that "you cannot compare" the dire situation in Hungary with that in other countries. Germany, the EU's largest and richest economy, is under growing pressure to offer more help.
Eastern states, led by Hungary, are pushing for richer EU members to provide more financial aid to help them out of their economic troubles.
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