German Chancellor Angela Merkel told parliament on Thursday that the structural reforms supporting austerity measures are the only way for Europe to survive the current debt crisis.

Chancellor Merkel said countries using the euro should not scale back or abandon austerity measures now in place. She also said increasing debt to implement growth would plunge the economy back to the early stage of the financial crisis. She said there is no miracle cure and that the combination of debt reduction and growth are the two pillars to bring the European Union out of the current economic crisis.

Chancellor Merkel's comments came just days after voters in Sunday's parliamentary elections in France and Greece overwhelmingly rejected candidates supporting cuts in social spending. With Greece facing a funding crisis, the European Union decided yesterday to grant the country a $6.7 billion loan payment with $5.5 billion to be paid out this week and the rest in the near future.