Germany and Austria joined forces in calling on European nations to reduce their public debt as the countries’ finance ministers met in Berlin on Monday. “It is the firm fundamental conviction that we need to see falling government debt ratios in Europe again,” Germany’s Christian Lindner said ahead of talks with his Austrian counterpart, Magnus Brunner. “Debt must be reduced so that fiscal stability is also secured and we maintain the central banks’ ability to act,” Lindner added. At the same time, he also stressed the importance of investments in the competitiveness of European economies and…