a State, a regional or local authority of a State, a public international body of which at least one Member State is a member, the European Central Bank (ECB), the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) established by the EFSF Framework Agreement and any other mechanism established with the objective of preserving the financial stability of European monetary union by providing temporary financial assistance to the Member States whose currency is the euro and Member States’ national central banks whether or not they issue shares or other securities; and

5. Subject to Articles 1, 4 and 6, the ECB shall cooperate closely with any public financial assistance facility including the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) and the ESM, in particular where such a facility has granted or is likely to grant, direct or indirect financial assistance to a credit institution which is subject to Article 4.

Memoranda of understanding setting down the detailed conditions for granting financial assistance are to be adopted under the Treaty establishing the European Stability Mechanism and the EFSF Framework Agreement.

33. Welcomes the principles of the decision taken by the Eurogroup Summit of 29 June 2012to ensure the stability of the euro ‘in particular by using the existing EFSF/ESM instruments in a flexible and efficient manner in order to stabilise markets for Member States respecting their Country Specific Recommendations and their other commitments including their respective timelines, under the European Semester, the Stability and Growth Pact and the Macroeconomic Imbalances Procedure’; acknowledges that the conditions will be set in a memorandum of understandings and that the ECB will ‘serve as an agent to EFSF/ESM in conducting market opera ...[+++]tions in an effective and efficient manner’;

Moreover, the ECB and the EFSF have signed an agency agreement, mandating the ECB to conduct market operations on behalf of the EFSF, and it is expected that a similar agreement will be concluded with the ESM.

(a)a State, a regional or local authority of a State, a public international body of which at least one Member State is a member, the European Central Bank (ECB), the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) established by the EFSF Framework Agreement and any other mechanism established with the objective of preserving the financial stability of European monetary union by providing temporary financial assistance to the Member States whose currency is the euro and Member States’ national central banks whether or not they issue shares or other securities; and