Germany threw its weight behind Portugal's request for financial help from the European Union on Thursday with Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives and their sometimes eurosceptic allies looking likely to back such a deal. Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, mindful of the concerns among taxpayers in affluent Germany already bearing the brunt of existing bailouts for Greece and Ireland, pointed out that such aid could only be granted in return for tough reforms.
Calling it a "sensible and necessary step", Schaeuble said in a statement that within the current bailout mechanism, aid was only available in return for "an adjustment programme". But crucially the first signals from members of Merkel's coalition were positive for Lisbon, including from her junior partners, the Free Democrats (FDP), who sometimes talk tough on bailouts to shore up their flagging popularity at home.
Senior FDP figures including Volker Wissing, who heads the German parliament's finance committee, welcomed Portugal taking a step that has long been widely considered inevitable. "We're relieved that Portugal is now seeking aid and thus sending a signal that will calm markets," said Wissing. Portugal's aid request was closely watched across Europe, especially in countries that have either already sought help - Greece and Ireland - or see it as a risk, such as Spain.
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