European leaders declared a turning point in the Greece-fueled debt crisis, shifting their focus away from the budget-cutting spree that has dominated two years of rescue operations. With a second Greek aid package wrapped up and the euro region slipping into recession, the leaders committed to a pro-growth agenda that sits uneasily with a deficit-control treaty that was signed today at the 17th summit since the outbreak of the crisis.

"We're not out of the economic crisis yet but we are turning the page of the financial crisis," French President Nicolas Sarkozy told reporters after the Brussels summit.

European leaders are on guard against a repeat of the false dawn of mid-2010 after Greece's first bailout and the setup of a rescue fund. A phase of market calm was jolted by German demands for bond write-offs that rattled investors, forcing Ireland and Portugal to fall back on emergency aid.