No More Naked: Germany and France Call for an EU Ban on Financial Speculation

There was much speculation about tensions between France and Germany after a planned bilateral summit between German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy on Monday was postponed at very short notice, with pundits postulating that the Franco-German partnership -- the European Union's famous "motor" -- was deeply divided over how to tackle the euro crisis.

But now, perhaps with that speculation in mind, the two leaders have joined forces to push for a EU-wide ban on certain kinds of speculative financial transactions, in a reaction to recent turbulence on the markets. In a joint letter released Wednesday, Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy urged the European Commission to "speed up" its work to introduce stricter controls on short-selling and credit default swaps (CDS) on sovereign bonds.

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