Photo Gallery ESM on the Eve of Activation
The permanent euro bailout fund, the European Stability Mechanism, is set to be activated, provided Germany's highest court doesn't strike it down. There is, however, still disagreement on what the fund should be allowed to do. Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti, pictured here with Chancellor Angela Merkel at the Chancellery in Berlin, would like to outfit the ESM with a banking license, allowing the fund to borrow as much as it needs.
The ESM is set to ultimately take over bailout duties from the temporary euro-zone fund, the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF). ESM staff are busily preparing for the big day.
Opposition in Germany to the permanent fund is significant, despite widespread support in German parliament, pictured here. Legal complaints that have been filed with Germany's high court claim that the fund could rob German parliament of its constitutionally guaranteed right to control the German budget.
The vote in German parliament in June was overwhelmingly in favor of the ESM. Still, Chancellor Merkel's support among allied lawmakers has slipped in recent months as doubts grow about Berlin's euro-crisis course.
The ESM case facing Germany's high court, with a verdict scheduled for this month, has evolved into the largest in the history of the court, with 37,000 co-plaintiffs having signed on. This image shows a document confirming that the court had received the complaint.
Most do not expect the German court to strike down the ESM. But it is likely to go out of its way to ensure that German parliamentarians maintain oversight.
The ESM is to have a lending capacity of 500 billion euros. Some have said that is not enough. This graphic breaks down the fund.
So far, three countries have received emergency bailout funding with two others, Spain and Cyprus, pending.
