The Euro Widens the Culture Gap
In his piece entitled “The Euro Widens the Culture Gap” from the New York Times, AICGS board member Josef Joffe explains how the Euro has made worse any cultural differences that existed between European countries pre-euro times. The PIIGS countries – Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece, and Spain – should never have been admitted to the Euro, argues Joffe. Now, the borrowing afforded to them by the Euro allowed them to continue their profligate ways, thus leading to the current crisis facing the euro-zone as a whole.
Euro Stabilization: problems, eurobonds, political union perspectives
The EU Summit of 21 July 2011 has brought considerable adjustment impulses for the stabilization of the euro-zone. At first sight, the main problem is sovereign debt financing of Greece, Ireland, and Portugal—the three countries that benefit from euro-zone rescue packages—but, in fact, the bigger issue is a series of broader challenges for EU integration and institutional reforms in the euro-area.
Transatlantic Relations in an Age of Fiscal Austerity
Issue Brief 40 Prior to the economic and financial crisis that began in 2008, the fiscal challenges of both Europe and the U.S. largely were viewed as longer-term issues, associated …
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Support Our WorkEuropeans Expecting German Leadership
As the euro saga unfolds, one thing is becoming clearer: The structure surrounding the euro has its weaknesses, but the crisis is not really about the currency at all. The current crisis is as much a crisis of EU governance and political mentality as it is of the economic policies of Greece or the ECB, argues AICGS Trustee and former U.S. Ambassador to Germany John Kornblum. A version of this essay originally appeared in the June 20, 2011, edition of Handelsblatt.
The Nuclear Power Endgame in Germany
As the era of nuclear energy approaches its end in Germany, the country can show how fast the shift to renewable energy can be achieved, writes R. Andreas Kraemer, Director & CEO of the Ecologic Institute in Berlin and co-author of AICGS Policy Report 31. In an essay that examines the history of the German anti-nuclear power movement and discusses the future of German alternative energy, Kraemer argues that Germany can realistically achieve 100 percent reliance on renewable energy and be the model going forward for other nations in a relatively short time frame. A version of this article originally appeared in The San Francisco Chronicle.
Doha or Dada
Klaus Deutsch, Deutsche Bank Research, provides an analysis on the Doha Round in the World Trade Organization and what the consequences could be if the world’s major trading partners fail to reach any agreement before the talks will presumably end.
Berlin und Paris sind genauso verantwortlich wie Athen
While Greece certainly deserves its share of the blame for the euro crisis, Germany and France are also responsible to a large extent, argues Olaf Gersemann, economics columnist for Die Welt and a regular contributor to the Advisor. Gersemann contends that by acting in the name of monetary integration, Germany and France pushed Greece and others into living beyond their means via the strength of the euro, leading to the current crisis. This essay appeared in the June 19, 2011, edition of Welt am Sonntag and is available in German only.
Taming the Financial Beast: A Status Report of Financial Regulatory Reform in the U.S. and European Union
Policy Report 47 In the wake of the global financial crisis, the United States and the European Union have acted not only to recover from the crisis, but also to …
Above the Fray No More
For the United States, there is much to fear from Europe’s debt crisis but not much it can do, writes Bruce Stokes of The National Journal, a regular contributor to the Advisor. Washington has a huge financial stake in the taming of the euro crisis, Stokes argues, but the tools that exist to limit the damage are very limited. This article originally appeared in the May 28, 2011, edition of The National Journal.
