Nov. 16 (Bloomberg) -- Germany is prepared to cede some national sovereignty to the European Union to achieve closer economic and political ties, Chancellor Angela Merkel said.

“Germany wants a strong European Union with 27 members,” Merkel told reporters in Berlin today. It also “also wants a 17-member euro zone as strong and that inspires confidence,” she said. “We are prepared to give up a piece of national sovereignty” to achieve that.

To contact the reporter on this story: Patrick Donahue in Berlin at pdonahue1@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Alan Crawford at acrawford6@bloomberg.net