Czech PM expects eurozone entry in 8-10 years

(PRAGUE) - Czech Prime Minister Petr Necas said Wednesday his country was likely to join the eurozone in eight or ten years, as lawmakers approved an EU treaty change allowing the eurozone to set up a key rescue fund.

Necas said there were no obligations stemming from the so-called ESM fund for his country right now, adding that a pertinent debate "will be led by our successors in eight or ten years, if possible at the moment when we join the eurozone."

"We are voting to enable our partners in the eurozone to take... steps that will stabilise the eurozone as such," said Necas, who has repeatedly stressed the Czech Republic would not join the debt ridden eurozone during his term ending in 2014.

"A stable eurozone is in our political and economic interest," he added.

The Eurozone Stability Mechanism (ESM) permanent rescue fund, created to ease market pressure on indebted eurozone nations like Greece and prevent contagion across the eurozone, is due to be launched in July 2012.

It will run in parallel with the temporary European Financial Stability Facility for one year.

Finance Minister Miroslav Kalousek said the Czech Republic had pledged to join the eurozone without delay when it joined the EU in 2004, but there is no mandatory deadline to join the group that now has 17 members.

"The decision to join and fix the date will not be made by this parliament, it will be made by future political leaders if they want," he added.

The Czech Republic, an ex-communist country of 10.5 million, posted 1.7-percent economic growth for 2011, ahead of zero growth expected by the central bank for this year.

The country has kept its debt under 40 percent of gross domestic product, well below the 60-percent threshold for eurozone members.