The Italian and French leaders on Thursday found common ground on how to confront Europe's worsening debt crisis, emphasizing that budget discipline should not come at the expense of economic growth and calling for a region-wide move to boost market confidence.

The leaders held their first bilateral meeting since President Francois Hollande took office last month as Italy's borrowing costs skyrocketed on concerns the country may be the next, after Spain, to need financial aid.

The positions outlined by Italian Premier Mario Monti and Hollande, however, were at odds with those espoused by Chancellor Angela Merkel.

Europe's crisis response "has not been enough to protect the euro from market turbulence," Monti said. "We need to reinforce the weak points of the system" in both the real economy and finance.

The two leaders agreed that focusing on growth does not mean abandoning budgetary discipline.