I said in my inaugural address that I am not the Council's secretary, nor am I the Parliament's lackey. That can sometimes lead to conflicts, which are defused through dialogue.

I believe neither the French nor the Dutch really rejected the constitutional treaty.

The position of EU commissioner for economic and monetary affairs could be combined with the office of Euro Group chairman. That job would be a great challenge for anyone who assumed it. On the one hand, he would have to make proposals. On the other hand, he would have to negotiate compromises with his European counterparts.

There is a proposal to divide the currency zone into a north and a south euro. There is also the idea of setting up a core monetary union in the middle of Europe. I disapprove of these debates. Instead, we should devote all of our efforts to supplementing the monetary union with a political union.

Greeks have to know that they are not alone ... Those who are fighting for the survivor of Greece inside the Euro area are deeply harmed by the impression floating around in the Greek public opinion that Greece is a victim. Greece is a member of the EU and the euro. I want Greece to be a constructive member of the Union because the EU is also benefiting from Greece.

If someone complains about Europe from Monday to Saturday then nobody is going to believe him on Sunday when he says he is a convinced European.

We do not attract Russian money to Luxembourg with high interest rates.