(hereinafter referred to as "EMI") shall be established and take up its duties; it shall have legal personality and be directed and managed by a Council, consisting of a President and the Governors of the national central banks, one of whom shall be Vice-President. The President shall be appointed by common accord of the Governments of the Member States at the level of Heads of State or of Government, on a recommendation from, as the case may be, the Committee of Governors of the central banks of the Member States (hereinafter referred to as "Committee of Governors") or the Council of the EMI, and after consulting the European Parliament and the Council. The President shall be selected from among persons of recognized standing and professional experience in monetary or banking matters. Only nationals of Member States may be President of the EMI. The Council of the EMI shall appoint the Vice-President. The Statute of the EMI is laid down in a Protocol annexed to this Treaty. The Committee of Governors shall be dissolved at the start of the second stage. 2. The EMI shall: - strengthen co-operation between the national central banks; - strengthen the co-ordination of monetary policies of the Member States, with the aim of ensuring price stability; - monitor the functioning of the European Monetary System; - hold consultations concerning issues falling within the competence of the national central banks and affecting the stability of financial institutions and markets; - take over the tasks of the European Monetary Cooperation Fund, which shall be dissolved; the modalities of dissolution are laid down in the Statute of the EMI; - facilitate the use of the ECU and oversee its development, including the smooth functioning of the ECU clearing system. 3. For the preparation of the third stage, the EMI shall: - prepare the instruments and procedures necessary for carrying out a single monetary policy in the third stage; - promote the harmonization, where necessary, of rules and practices governing the collection, compilation and distribution of statistics in the areas in the areas within its field of competence; - prepare the rules for operations to be undertaken by the national central banks within the framework of the ESCB; - promote the efficiency of cross-border payments; - supervise the technical preparation of ECU bank notes. At the latest by 31 December 1996, the EMI shall specify the regulatory, organizational and logistical framework necessary for the ESCB to perform its tasks in the third stage. This framework shall be submitted for decision to the ECB at the date of its establishment. 4. The EMI, acting by a majority of two thirds of the members of its Council, may: - formulate opinions or recommendations on the overall orientation of monetary policy and exchange rate policy as well as on related measures introduced in each Member State; - submit opinions or recommendations to Governments and to the