Slovak Opposition Leader Says EFSF Approval Agreed

Slovak opposition leader Robert Fico and parties in the outgoing Slovak government coalition have reached an agreement to ratify a plan to strengthen the euro zone's EFSF rescue fund by Friday and to hold an election in March, Fico said.

Three parties in the coalition held talks with Fico's leftist opposition Smer party on Wednesday after their cabinet collapsed in a failed confidence vote that Prime Minister Iveta Radicova had tied to ratification of the euro safety net.