Eurogroup president Mario Centeno warned the euro single currency could break apart if feuding governments don't bury the hatchet and agree on a rescue plan to help Italy and Spain.
The carefully worded warning came as the 19 members of the single currency still cannot agree on a rescue plan to reverse the devastating impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the European economy.
Italy and Spain are so far the continent's worst hit and are also among the eurozone's most indebted countries. On their own, they simply lack the fiscal firepower to restart their economies.
Centeno's plea for unity harked back to the worst days of the eurozone debt crisis when divisions between the eurozone's richer and poorer members almost sank the currency.