Extreme pessimists who have been predicting the demise of the euro have been shown to be wrong. Present and future measures and the guidelines set out by eurozone heads of state and government will ensure that the single currency survives and gets stronger, but the opposite extreme, imagining that all the problems have now been solved, would be equally erroneous. Beyond the official documents, statements and explanations of key players set out in this newsletter, the true meaning of the leaders' response to the crisis can be summarised as follows:
The treasury bond buy-up mechanism for countries subject to unfairly high interest rates is for member states that have taken and applied proper spending cuts as set out in the fiscal compact. There is no question of shutting one's eyes to regular failure to do as one has promised - this is about support for eurozone nations which have undertaken reforms and are dealing with their deficits;
The enemies the eurozone has decided to take on are financial speculation and its agents, whether in the City of London or elsewhere;
Various types of action are being examined to deal with budget problems, starting with the financial transaction tax, which consenting member states should introduce as soon as possible;
The aid measures are accompanied by political commitments. The automatic financial mechanisms come with loss of sovereignty at political level, the sense of pooling some powers that are now to be exercised in common. The devil here is in the detail and the timing.
Given the global backdrop and the genuine weight of individual EU nations, the only way they can protect or (more accurately) regain genuine autonomy is to pool their autonomy at EU level. If this is agreed upon, then the decisions and directions taken in these two days of sound and fury will have their importance in the history of Europe. (FR/transl.fl)
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