Europe's Old and New Truths

The Union that was the European miracle of the second half of the 20th century now embodies the malaise of the 21st. A counterargument exists. It is that the agony of the euro will end up illustrating Jean Monnet’s phrase that crises are the great federators of history. The planned European banking union, single supervisory system and fiscal harmonization will prove to be the catalysts of the Continent’s ever closer union. I heard both the European break-up and breakthrough views in equal measure during a conference here. What is unquestionable is that Europe is living its deepest unease since the end of the Cold War.