FILE PHOTO: German Chancellor Angela Merkel speaks during the celebrations of the 70th anniversary of the "Women's Union" of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) in Frankfurt, Germany, May 5, 2018. REUTERS/Ralph Orlowski

FRANKFURT (Reuters) - German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday her conservative bloc wanted a reduction in European banking sector risks before a banking union can be formed, adding that the euro zone’s rescue fund should remain under parliamentary control.

“On the issue of the banking union, for us it is clear that only when risks are reduced can we talk about agreeing a banking union,” Merkel told a news conference after a meeting of senior officials from the conservative bloc in Frankfurt.

“For us, it is also clear that the ESM (rescue fund) should remain under parliamentary control of the national parliaments. The ESM is an inter-governmental facility,” she added of the fund, which some EU officials want to turn into a European Monetary Fund.