After three years of wrangling, European Union finance ministers have agreed on how to interpret a key sentence in the "Pact on Stability and Growth" which outlines the requirements for membership in the EU monetary union, the euro. The "Pact on Stability and Growth" stipulates that membership in the "euro zone" is open only to EU countries whose annual national budget does not include deficit spending greater than 3 percent of the country's gross domestic product. In addition, total national debt is not allowed to exceed 60 percent of gross domestic product. The purpose of the deficit limits is to help ensure the stability of the euro.

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