Prague  - Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker Thursday called on the European Union to back bloc's members that face a threat of being put on an international black list of tax havens.

"I can't imagine for a single second that the European Union would agree to placing Belgium, Austria and Luxembourg on a list of countries against which it is necessary to adopt sanctions," he said through an interpreter during his Prague visit.

Austria, Belgium and Luxembourg are seen as candidates for the black list, which is drawn by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, because they refuse to share information on foreign savings in their banks.

Juncker insisted that abiding to bank secrecy does not make Luxembourg a tax haven. "Bank secrecy is not a synonym for a tax haven," he said.

He said that Luxembourg did not breach EU law. While EU member states are obliged to share bank information, the three countries have obtained exemptions that allow them to tax foreign deposits instead.

The G20 group of leading industrial and developing countries is set to debate plans to expand the list at its upcoming London summit on April 2, which is aimed at tackling the financial and economic crisis.

EU leaders are expected to discuss the issue at their regular spring summit on March 19-20.

In Prague, Juncker garnered support of his Czech counterpart Mirek Topolanek, whose country chairs the EU until June 30.

"For me bank secrecy is the same as a secrecy of confession," Topolanek said. (dpa)