But I would also like to say to the Germans: you yourselves have every interest in getting Greece to adjust its economy and for it to be a stable partner in Europe and in the euro area. Question: Is such scepticism with regard to financial assistance “typically German”? Trichet: No, you also find it in other countries.
The economic costs and risks posed by large deficits have been frequently discussed and I will not repeat those points today. Instead, I will only observe that, among the possible effects, increases in the deficit (and, as a result, in the national debt) would shift the burden of paying for government spending from the present to the future.