European leaders are struggling to overcome a crisis-fighting stalemate as they face discord over a banking union, Greece's ongoing debate on how to meet bailout commitments and foot-dragging by Spain on aid requests.

Chancellor Angela Merkel and President Francois Hollande underlined Franco-German disagreement over the weekend as they clashed on a timetable to introduce joint oversight of the region's banking sector, with Merkel rebuffing Hollande's appeal to activate it "the earlier, the better."

Financial markets "that are watching Europe want to see results," Merkel said at the meeting on Sept. 22 near Ludwigsburg, Germany, celebrating the two nations' reconciliation after World War II. Still, "it has to be thorough, the quality has to be good and then we'll see how long it takes," she said.