By Greg Keller and Juergen Baetz
Paris (AP) — France and Germany called on Tuesday for a “new economic government” for Europe, with mandatory balanced budgets enshrined in the constitutions of all euro zone members as a way to overcome the debt crisis that has threatened to fracture the continent’s fragile common currency.
French President Nicolas Sarkozy and German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s push for long-term political solutions instead of immediate financial measures like a single European bond sent the euro sliding.