Austrian finance minister: fighting tax evasion will be EC presidency priority

ZURICH (Reuters) - Pushing forward European and international measures to prevent profit shifting and international tax fraud will be a top priority for Austria's European Council presidency in the second half of 2018, Austrian Finance Minister Hans Joerg Schelling said on Saturday.

"The cross-border fight against tax fraud and tax avoidance is a top priority for me," Schelling said in a statement following a meeting with French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire in Vienna.

"Tackling tax evasion more effectively will require European and international solutions. The European Union must finally come up with a joint strategy," he said.

The finance ministry said Schelling had devised a plan to eliminate opportunities for tax avoidance and evasion, which was discussed with European Economic and Financial Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici two weeks ago.

During their meeting on Saturday, Le Maire and Schelling discussed the need for a deepening of ties in the economic and monetary unions of the EU and euro zone, the finance ministry said.

Estonia currently holds the presidency of the European Council, with Bulgaria due to take over from January.

(Reporting by Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi; Editing by Andrew Bolton)