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EU leaders have agreed on a roadmap for eurozone integration beyond the deal on centralised banking supervision, German Chancellor Angela Merkel said.

Specific dates have not yet been agreed for the phases of integration. But the EU summit chairman, Herman Van Rompuy, said a deal should be reached next year on a joint resolution scheme for winding up failed banks.

Mr Van Rompuy's far-reaching roadmap was the main topic of the two-day Brussels summit. Speaking after the summit talks, French President Francois Hollande said: "There is no doubt today about the integrity of the eurozone - Europe cannot now be taken by surprise."

But beyond the banking reforms, he said, Europe must address the problems of unemployment and feeble growth.

The deal to make the European Central Bank (ECB) the chief regulator should pave the way for direct recapitalisation of struggling eurozone banks by the main bailout fund, the 500bn-euro (£406bn; $654bn) European Stability Mechanism (ESM). Spain is especially anxious to get that help for its debt-laden banks.

Direct recapitalisation would help break the "vicious circle" in which bank debts have put a crippling burden on national budgets and led to massive taxpayer-funded bailouts. However, Germany insists that the ESM should not be used to write off the existing "legacy" debts that have burdened Spain, Greece and the Republic of Ireland. Any ESM loans will be accompanied by tough rules on budget discipline.