ECB chief rejects idea of expelling eurozone sinners

(PARIS) - European Central Bank chief Jean-Claude Trichet said it would be "absurd" to think that a eurozone nation could leave the bloc if it shirks its obligations, an idea Germany floated on Wednesday.

"I have always said that I do not comment on absurd hypotheses," Trichet told French magazine Le Point when asked, before Germany proposed the idea, whether a eurozone member could leave the single currency bloc if it is no longer able to fulfill its duties.

"Entering the eurozone is a major decision. It is not an a-la-carte membership. It is about sharing a common destiny with other countries," he said in the interview that was conducted Monday and will be published Thursday.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Wednesday that the 16-nation eurozone must have the option of expelling a member from the club if a country persistently breaks its rules.

Her comments came as the eurozone grapples with a major debt crisis in Greece that has shaken the euro and exposed strains within the European Union.

Under pressure from the EU, Greece's government has approved austerity measures to cut its runaway public deficit, which has reached 12.7 percent of national output -- more than four times the limit allowed by the eurozone.

Trichet welcomed the efforts made by the Greek Socialist government, saying they were "very important, necessary, convincing and courageous."

"At this stage, I have no reason to doubt the strength of other members of the eurozone as long as they rigorously implement their respective stability programmes," he said.

"Everyone is determined to clean up the situation of their public accounts," Trichet said.

Asked about Germany's idea of creating a European Monetary Fund to help countries in trouble, Trichet said it would be necessary to "strictly supervise the actions of such a fund and confine its actions to a serious and precise threat."