The International Monetary Fund pushed European policy makers toconsider writing off some aid to Greece, widening the fight to keepthe 17-nation euro zone from splintering.

“The Greek debt will have to be addressed,” IMF ManagingDirector Christine Lagarde said in Washington yesterday. The IMFhas indicated that additional aid for Greece will have to come fromEurope, suggesting that the euro area may need to consider losseson bonds held by the European Central Bank or loans extended bygovernments.

Greece's financing gap won't be solved with the budget measuresbeing discussed because its growth prospects are too weak, Lagardesaid at the Peterson Institute for International Economics inWashington. She said efforts to find 11.5 billion euros ($15billion) in additional savings won't be enough to shore up thebailout jointly supervised by the IMF, the European Commission andthe ECB.