23 European Union nations agree to new treaty to save euro

The 17 countries that use the euro, plus six of their European Union (EU) partners, on Friday agreed to an ambitious treaty tying their finances together in the hopes of solving Europe's debt crisis. At the same time, opposition led by Britain created a deep rift in the Union.

In drafting a new treaty, the 23 countries hope to help European nations struggling with giant debts, and in that sense there were early indications of success. Such an agreement is considered necessary before the European Central Bank and other institutions commit more money to lowering the borrowing costs of heavily indebted countries like Italy and Spain.

"It's a very good outcome for the euro area, very good," ECB president Mario Draghi said in Brussels. "It is going to be the basis for much more disciplined economic policy for euro-area members. And certainly it is going to be helpful in the present situation."

Stocks and the euro climbed. The Stoxx 50 of leading European shares and Dow futures both rose 0.7%, and the euro was trading 0.5% higher at $1.3413.

But Draghi has yet to say whether the European Central Bank will take more aggressive action to buy the bonds of heavily indebted countries, and borrowing costs for European governments were slightly higher today.

While the deal could help save the euro, the political implications of the rift are enormous. Germany and France had hoped to persuade all 27 EU countries to agree to change the treaty that governs their union. But Britain, which doesn't use the euro, led the push. Hungary, the Czech Republic and Sweden said they were undecided, though the prime minister said Swedish participation was unlikely.