Prime Minister George Papandreou was in Berlin last week before German lawmakers ratified changes to the European Financial Stability Facility, the euro rescue fund.

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Mr. Van Rompuy said he and Mr. Lew talked about the next steps in building the banking union, including work on a facility to allow the euro-zone bailout fund, the European Stability Mechanism, to directly recapitalize ailing banks without having to go through national governments.

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Or create a massively large stability fund and combine that with some haircuts for euro bond holders.

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According to the rules any country, including Spain and Italy, that appeals for the OMT program must first request a bailout from the euro-area's rescue fund -- the European Stability Mechanism.

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The European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), the euro zone's bail-out fund, must carry out simultaneous injections of capital into the region's banks as soon as it can.

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In Berlin, the German Bundestag is expected to approve extending the size and scope of a euro zone bailout fund with the marble-mouth sounding name of the European Financial Stability Facility.

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Euro-area leaders agreed that the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), their new permanent rescue fund, would be able to inject funds directly into banks rather than via loans to the government.

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