Italy's Monti Hopes Summit Win Plays at Home

Over the of the round-the-clock summit in Brussels, premier deployed the kind of hard-nosed negotiating tactics belie his public image a mild-mannered economics professor.

He successfully pressed German Chancellor Angela Merkel to agree measures aimed at shoring Spanish banks and lowering the borrowing costs of Italy Spain. In the , he secured agreement from European Union leaders extend the use of euro-zone funds Greece-style bailouts.

"Italy has fought these measures, particular for those stabilizing spreads," Mr. Monti said. He said EU leaders had the past "treated each other with excessive courtesy."

Mr. Monti needed a strong showing the summit to regain momentum back home. The austerity measures he has imposed Italians are deeply unpopular, pressure on the political parties back him to pull their support Parliament.

The premier had to show he could convince EU authorities to erect a financial firewall Italy's €1.9 trillion ($2.4 trillion) debt to protect the country crisis.

Stefano Fassina, a top official the center-left Democratic Party who questioned the future of Mr. Monti's government, called Mr. Monti's maneuvering "a positive change pace."

But it is unclear Mr. Monti's efforts at the summit will win supporters, and offer proof Berlin is softening its resistance his agenda. A major test of support will come next week Mr. Monti's labor minister faces a no-confidence vote in Parliament.

Mr. Fassina warned, , that details of the deal reached in Brussels thin. EU officials said the details would be hammered at a meeting July 9.

the summit, the 27 EU leaders had set a €120 billion growth package, intended to be crowning achievement of the summit. But late Thursday, the backing of Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, Mr. Monti refused to sign , according to an Italian official.

, he demanded that EU leaders first consider an item not the summit's formal agenda: His proposal to adopt he labeled a "stability mechanism" of bond-buying to keep a lid the price of Italian and Spanish debt.

"Monti didn't want to get this point…It was his move last resort," the Italian official said.

Ms. Merkel acknowledged the pressure faced from Mr. Monti. She said later she and Mr. Monti had private discussions " least 10 times."

"We constantly spoke some parts of the wording," Ms. Merkel said. " a while we were also dealing football," she added, in reference Italy's triumph on Thursday over Germany in the European soccer semifinals.

That victory was dealt another Mario—Italian striker Mario Balotelli—who scored goals against Germany in the .


Adapted and abridged from: The Wall Street Journal, June 29, 2012.