Germany's Schaeuble Terms France's Far-Right FN 'Fascist'

Germany's finance minister on Tuesday described France's far-right National Front (FN), which came out on top in France's weekend vote for a new European Parliament, as a "fascist" party.

Wolfgang Schaeuble told a forum on Europe that the outcome in Europe's second biggest economy was a vote "not for a right-wing party but for a fascist party".

The result is a reality check "for everyone in Europe, not only for our friends in France", Schaeuble, a veteran and strongly pro-EU member of Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives, added.

"My conviction is we have to make Europe better, not become euroskeptic," he warned.

Merkel said Monday that the rise of populist parties in the European Parliament elections was "regrettable" and should be countered by European competitiveness, jobs and growth.