German court rejects challenge to eurozone rescue deals

Germany's top court on Wednesday rejected a challenge to the legality of the country bailing out other eurozone nations facing financial hardship.

The Constitutional Court, in Karlsruhe, western Germany, ruled that rescue packages were legal but said parliament must have greater say in bailout deals.

Presiding judge Andreas Vosskuhle said:

The government is obligated in the cases of large expenditures to get the approval of the parliamentary budgetary committee.

The court also ruled that parliament must have "sufficient influence" over the conditions attached to future rescue deals, reported Al Jazeera. And it found that parliament may not approve any deal that leads to a pooling of national debt.

The court was responding to a challenge brought by six prominent German Eurosceptics.

The BBC reports that the decision in Germany, the eurozone's largest economy, could hinder Europe's response to the debt crisis, which has been criticized as being too slow.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel welcomed the ruling, saying that it vindicated her government – and proved the euro was more than just a common currency.

The euro is the guarantor of a unified Europe. If the euro collapses, Europe collapses.

So far amid the eurozone crisis, stronger nations have agreed to help Greece, Portugal and the Republic of Ireland meet their debt obligations.