"It is an informal meeting, an informal exchange of views," spokesman Steffen Seibert said, adding that the pair would hold a news conference after their talks.

The meeting is one of a series that Merkel is holding at the start of the new year as Europea tries to get a grip on its two-year old sovereign debt crisis.

She is meeting French President Nicolas Sarkozy in Berlin later on Monday and Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti on Wednesday.