By Mark John BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Europe must be ready to follow the United States in supporting national car industries, European leaders said at a summit on Thursday which vowed action to help the real economy after the credit crunch. The U.S. Congress last month approved $25 billion in low-interest loans to the country's three main carmakers, which have suffered from the global financial markets crisis and a slump in auto sales, to help them meet a federal mandate to make more fuel-efficient cars. French President Nicolas Sarkozy said he had requested the European Commission look into providing assistance to the bloc's automakers to help them meet a similar push for greener cars. 'The Americans have just decided to grant $25 billion in loans at discounted rates to their three carmakers, which are in the situation you are aware of. We in Europe must take competition conditions into account,' Sarkozy told a news conference at the end of the Brussels summit. 'Can we ask the European automobile industry to produce clean cars, to change the industrial machinery in a few months, without giving them a hand? That is the aim of the study we have requested from the Commission,' he added. The move won support from other EU leaders. 'Since the United States of America intervenes massively to support its auto companies, it shouldn't create outrage if some of our states find it necessary to consider giving support -- I don't know of what type -- to their auto industries,' Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said. The European car industry has called for 40 billion euros ($54 billion) in aid to help it meet green targets.