Eurogroup chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem said Monday he believed an outcry over his comment that southern European countries blew money on "drinks and women" was more triggered by anger at unpopular eurozone austerity policies.
And he said he regretted the uproar around the interview which has "escalated enormously. It's starting to look like I've committed a war crime".
Last month's gaffe by Dijsselbloem, who is also the Dutch finance minister, and the resulting backlash exposed simmering north-south tensions in the European Union's single currency zone.
"Everyone knows I never said southern Europeans spend their money on booze and women. That was never my message," Dijsselbloem said told the centre-left Dutch daily De Volkskrant.
"The anger over (what I said in) the interview is anger over eight years of crisis management policy," he added.
The eurozone debt crisis almost forced Greece out of the zone and German-led austerity has left a legacy of bitterness.
"Some euro countries find the policies were too strictly shaped around a northern agenda. That the commitments and rules are too restrictive and therefore killing the economy," said Dijsselbloem.
The tensions have however weakened Dijsselbloem, already reeling after his Labour party lost heavily in Dutch elections almost a month ago, which puts his future as finance minister and Eurogroup chief in jeopardy.
But Dijsselbloem has refused to step down, saying he stood by the "gist of his message."
"We cannot have limitless and unconditional solidarity. In the much-maligned interview I said that there was a lot of solidarity with euro-countries who were in trouble."
In an interview with Germany's Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung on March 20, Dijsselbloem said that while coming to the aid of eurozone partners was important, "I can't spend all my money on drinks and women and then ask for help."
The remarks caused an uproar in the southern European countries of Portugal, Greece and Cyprus that have all received eurozone bailouts in recent years, with Spain's banks also receiving support.
"The point I was making is that solidarity is not a charity. It's not for nothing that European emergency bailout programmes... come with strict conditions."
"Solidarity means you must fulfil your commitments otherwise the eurozone would collapse," Dijsselbloem said.
