Monti Says Permanent Contagion Risk, Spain Are Addressed

The 17 nations sharing the euro face a permanent risk of contagion from the region’s debt crisis and European Union leaders are tackling the difficulties faced by Spain’s banks, said Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti.

“As far as the problem of the banks is concerned, I am aware that everything is being followed very, very closely and in close cooperation with the EU institutions and the Spanish government,” Monti said at a conference on U.S.-Italian relations in Venice yesterday. “I am fully confident that this issue is being promptly and adequately dealt with.”