EU to spend 12 billion euro on easing youth unemployment

Member states of the European Union (EU) plan to spend a combined 12 billion euro (approximately 17.23 trillion won) in 2014 and 2015 to help ease high youth unemployment facing the continent, French President Francois Hollande said Tuesday (local time).

Hollande made public the plan in a news conference following a youth conference on employment at the Elysee Palace in Paris.

Also attending the conference included German Chancellor Angela Merkel, European Council President Herman Van Rompuy, European Parliament President Martin Schulz and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.

It was the bloc's second conference on youth employment since the inaugural meeting in July.

It was at least the fourth time in six months that EU leaders discussed the continent's youth unemployment crisis.

AJP