The charge sheet against Europe runs something like this: The EU is institutionally blocked, insular, and incapable of effective crisis management. Low growth Europe is in decline in relation to the rising powers of China, India, Brazil and other emerging market economies. To borrow Bob Rubin’s image, Europe is like a museum with splendid antique relics – to the left, the French room devoted to social solidarity; to the right; the German room devoted to metal bashing and mass manufacturing, and out in front, the Swedish room devoted to social democracy. In short, Europe looks politically and structurally incapable of adapting to the challenges of today, let alone tomorrow.
This to-and-fro suggests that in the short term the eurozone’s response will be to muddle through. Outsiders will find this particularly frustrating because they would prefer far neater solutions such as a fully fledged federal political construct to balance the federal monetary union. But for more than 50 years Europe has defied such categorization. Culture, history and the nation state have proved far too potent. European unity has existed through diversity.
For the complete report by Lionel Barber in the Financial Times click on: FT.com / Brussels / Economy - Can the Euro survive?
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