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The German government said Monday that countries which fail to keep their finances in order should be kicked out of the eurozone, as EU ministers prepared to discuss a rescue package for debt-laden Greece.

"We need stricter rules -- that means, in an extreme emergency, having the possibility of removing from the euro area a country that does not get its finances in order," German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble was quoted as saying.

He reiterated the need for a European Monetary Fund, saying the rules currently governing the 16-nation eurozone -- the Stability and Growth Pact -- were not sufficient for the current crisis facing the club.

"We need the EMF because we need stricter rules. The euro stability pact is not enough. At the time, no one thought of the possibility that a euro country could become insolvent," he told mass circulation daily Bild.

However in comments in the Financial Times French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde amply displayed the differences at the heart of the eurozone over the tools needed for economic crisis management.

The idea of a European monetary fund to help nations in crisis is not a priority for the euro area, she said.

The eurozone should first ensure Greece sticks to its promised austerity measures, then show "a bit of creativity and innovation" and use current European Union rules to strengthen budgetary discipline, Lagarde added.

A strategy to rescue Greece with tens of billions of euros conditioned on the implementation by Athens of huge budget cuts is the burning issue at the session of eurozone finance ministers in Brussels Monday.

The finance ministers from the 16 eurozone countries were also expected to argue over longer-term ways of helping member economies in trouble, for example through emergency loans and the idea of a European monetary fund.

Such an emergency fund to rescue eurozone economies could be a "long-term" possibility, the European Union's Commissioner for Competition Joaquin Almunia said Monday.

But "we cannot allow ourselves the luxury of thinking in the long term if we don't think in the short and medium term," he said in Madrid.

He also said that coordination over budgets must be improved and strengthened and that the debt crisis in Greece must be resolved to get the eurozone economy back on track.

Lagarde, in separate comments published Monday, said EU experts have been working on the contingency plan for Greece so that if money is needed "all we would have to do is press the button."

In an interview with the Wall Street Journal, however, she also emphasised that there was no "bailout plan" for Greece.

The Greek crisis has caused severe strains for the eurozone and therefore for the wider European Union and has forced the Greek government to announce enormous budget cuts and reforms to its economy.

A meeting of EU ministers is to decide on Tuesday if the latest Greek programme is enough, and any resulting help for Athens is likely to be linked to application of the measures.

But many analysts say that some form of special support for Greece, while probably relieving tensions in the short term, could raise problems about the credibility of eurozone public finances in the longer term.

The aim of Monday's Eurogroup meeting is "to get a result in terms of Europe's options for addressing the Greek problems if they ever get to that stage," a European source told AFP on condition of anonymity ahead of the talks, due to start at 1600 GMT.

Eurozone rules ban bailouts for member states experiencing financial crises.

The hope among European leaders is that having a safety net in place will reassure investors that Greece will not default on its debts and therefore help lower the rate at which Greece is able to raise funds on international markets.

That would allow Greece to meet its requirements for debt repayments and public spending this year. Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou said last month that Greece's borrowing needs were assured only until mid-March.

AFP