Economic and Monetary Union at twenty: A stocktaking of a tumultuous second decade: introduction
Date
2020
Authors
Howarth, David
Verdun, Amy
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
Journal of European Integration
Abstract
This contribution discusses the two main asymmetries of European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) as they developed over the past two decades since the launch of the Single Currency. From the outset, EMU involved asymmetric degrees of integration in the area of ‘economic’ union (less centralised governance) versus ‘monetary’ union (more supranational governance). With the outbreak of the Sovereign Debt Crisis in 2010, the regime-shaping relevance of a second asymmetry emerged: one roughly between the member states of the Euro Area ‘core’ and those in the ‘periphery’. Each of the two asymmetries have created a range of challenges — institutional, policy and political — that undermine the stability and sustainability of the EMU project.
Description
Keywords
Economic and Monetary Union, asymmetry, European integration, euro area, Sovereign Debt Crisis, Coronavirus (Covid-19) Crisis, European integration theory
Citation
Howarth, D. & Verdun, A. (2020). Economic and Monetary Union at twenty: A stocktaking of a tumultuous second decade: Introduction. Journal of European Integration, 42(3), 287-293. https://doi.org/10.1080/07036337.2020.1730348