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It's not just up to Germany to help Greece: Schaeuble

DRESDEN, Germany (Reuters) - German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said on Friday that it was not just up to Germany to help Greece, saying this was a task for the whole of the euro zone. "We are aware of our responsibility and we will do everything to do justice to this responsibility but this is not just a responsibility for one country, not just a responsibility for Germany … It's a responsibility for the euro zone as a whole," he said after a meeting of the finance ministers and central bank chiefs of the Group of Seven (G7) countries. Speaking at the same news conference, Bundesbank chief Jens Weidmann said participants at the G7 meeting had discussed how the extended period of low interest rates could cause financial stability risks to arise, especially in the insurance sector. "I think one thing is clear, namely that the duration of the low interest rates of course has a decisive influence on financial stability risks and the build-up of possible exaggerations on the financial markets," Weidmann said. "And in this respect my opinion is certainly that the intensity with which people are discussing the risks has certainly increased and in this analysis there is agreement that we need to be careful and keep an eye on the risks," he added. Turning to the volatility on financial markets in recent weeks, Weidmann said the G7 members thought the sharp increase in longer-term interest rates was a "correction" of earlier exaggerations, especially where bond markets were concerned. (Reporting by Michelle Martin and Paul Carrel; editing by Jeremy Gaunt)