Premier Matteo Renzi said Tuesday
that the problem of mapping out the future direction of the
European Union is bigger than the Greek debt crisis.
"I'm about to go to Brussels for the umpteenth debate on
Europe," Renzi told Italian scientists at the European
Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) laboratory in Geneva.
"But there's a problem that's bigger than the Greek
emergency - the problem of what kind of Europe we want in the
future," he said.
"All our intelligence is needed to build a political
Europe, not just an economic one".
On his way in to to a eurozone summit on the Greek
financial crisis in Brussels later in the day, the premier told
journalists that he is "more concerned about the EU than about
the fate of a single country".
"I'm not all that worried about a technical solution on
Greece, which I think can be found prettily easily," the premier
said.
"I'm a little more concerned about finding a political
outlook for Europe, which right now isn't working".
Renzi went on to reiterate his call for "more growth, more
future, more innovation".
"With a bit of good will an accord (on Greece) can be
found...probably not today but in the next few hours," the
premier said.
"I believe Greek leaders are interested in staying in the
euro, but the rules must be followed," he added.
"They can be interpreted flexibly, but they must be
followed."
Renzi went on to say that "I understand there's an ongoing
Truman Show in the media that is only talking about Greece, but
we need a...debate on the future of Europe".
In Geneva earlier in the day, the premier said Italians
will be called to a referendum next year to judge ongoing
constitutional reforms.
"In 2016 we'll have (the referendum) to see what reforms
citizens like, or don't," he said.
A reform is currently going through parliament to strip the
Senate of most of its lawmaking powers, turning it into a
smaller body of regionally elected officials.
Structural reforms "are our business" and "we are
undertaking them at a speed that would have been unexpected and
incomprehensible up till a short time ago," the premier said.
"We'll keep this commitment and bring home the results," he
said, citing the need "to make Italy a simpler country" by
slashing red tape for business, making the labour market more
flexible and passing "an electoral law that means a change of
government every five years instead of every three months".
Things that don't work need to be changed "with a machete,"
Renzi continued.
"We have been doing so, and we need to keep doing it even
more".
The premier added that however, "there is also an Italy
that works and that looks towards Europe...I would like to ask
you to look to the future with more conviction".
"Italy makes a large contribution in terms of human and
economic resources to institutions such as CERN," Renzi said in
a post on his Facebook page.
"We need to stop beating ourselves and instead see the
great things that our country is able to do in the world," he
added. "Courage, Italy".
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