( CNN ) -- Eurozone nations must follow the rules if they want to get out of the financial crisis plaguing the region , says Finnish Prime Minister Jyrki Katainen . In an interview with CNN 's Richard Quest , Katainen said the crisis is serving as a `` very hard lesson '' to many countries inside the 17-nation single currency union . `` One of the reasons why we are in crisis at the moment is that everybody did not follow strictly the rule base and now we pay the price , '' Katainen said . Since the eurozone debt crisis began in 2010 , five countries -- Greece , Ireland , Portugal , Spain and Cyprus -- have requested bailouts from Europe 's rescue funds . But Katainen said a raft of new regulations within the next few months will make Europe `` much better , safer and sustainable . '' This includes a banking union regulated by the European Central Bank that will become active in 2014 and the euro-wide rescue fund known as the European Stability Mechanism . Katainen highlighted falling interest rates of government debt for countries such as Ireland and Portugal as a sign that European confidence is returning . He added : `` I am a former finance minister and I have learned not to say that we have seen the worst . '' The Finnish Prime Minister , who in the past has been an outspoken supporter of austerity for countries that have spent recklessly , said European nations must restore competitiveness to their economies . `` In Spain the competitiveness has been improving a lot they have done labor market reforms , they have done similar things in Ireland but it always takes some time to function . ''
Five countries have all requested bailouts -- Greece , Ireland , Portugal , Spain and Cyprus . Katainen said the crisis is serving as a `` very hard lesson '' to many eurozone countries . The euro has been in place for almost two decades now