European Union leaders will take "all the necessary steps" to ensure the stability of the bloc's financial system and protect the savings of their citizens, a joint statement issued on their behalf by the French presidency of the EU said Monday, reported dpa.
Such measures would include the injection of liquidity by European central banks, bail-outs for troubled banks and guarantees for deposits, the joint statement said.
Noting that no European depositor had lost their savings so far, the EU leaders called for "coordination and close cooperation" in dealing with the effects of the global credit crunch.
The unprecedented statement came as European stock markets tumbled and as finance ministers from the 15 EU countries that share the euro were holding talks in Luxembourg on ways to deal with the continent's exploding financial crisis.