GM Generali

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Motors Corp. (GM) executives arrrived in Brussels Friday for talks with European Union economic and industry ministers to try to avoid a meltdown of the car giant's European activities.

"The situation of General Motors in Europe merits special attention," the European Commission said, adding no immediate answers are expected.

GM's Chief Operating Officer in Detroit Fritz Henderson, and GM Europe Chief Executive Carl Peter Forster are attending the discussions along with ministers from Germany, Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Luxembourg, Portugal, Romania, Sweden, the Netherlands and the U.K.

The E.U.'s Industry and Enterprise Commissioner Guenter Verheugen has said GM hasn't given clear information on its plans for the European businesses. General Motors' European division includes Opel, Vauxhall and Saab. E.U. countries with GM car plants fear restructuring plans could lead to many thousands of job cuts and even trigger social unrest.

Opel and Vauxhall need a total of EUR3.3 billion in aid, while Saab needs EUR500 million from the Swedish government to survive, GM officials have said.

GM itself has received a $13.4 billion bailout from the U.S. government and is urgently seeking $16.6 billion more.

Opel and Saab might push for around 7,600 job cuts as part of a restructuring plan to receive state aid and stave off insolvency, a person familiar with the situation has told Dow Jones Newswires.

The German government is looking for investors for Opel, but nothing can happen without answers from GM on Opel's future, it has said.

"We are hoping that something comes out of the meeting that our minister can take with him," when he meets GM bosses in the U.S. next week, German Industry Ministry official Jochen Homann said as he arrived for Friday's meeting.

-By Alessandro Torello, Dow Jones Newswires; +32 2 741 14 88; alessandro.torello@dowjones.com