The Greek Case and the Future of the Eurozone

Abstract

Summary:

The fact that Greece joined the Eurozone on 1 January 2001 still perplexes in terms of the country’s readiness for membership in the monetary union of the EU at that time. The events that followed led to the formation of a new group of countries in South Europe (known as the PIIGS countries – Portugal, Ireland, Italy, Greece, Spain) where the financial discipline and the level of indebtedness reached new dimensions. Greece was referred to as "Argentina in Europe" and everyone began talking about and expecting the day when it would declare yet another bankruptcy. In the pursuit of more comprehensive research in the field of European issues this paper aims to: evaluate the importance of the Eurozone (in broader terms of the Economic and Monetary Union) in terms of guaranteeing prosperity and stability across Europe; point out the place and the challenges Greece faces as the member of the EU monetary union that is currently defined as the one posing real threat to the integrity of the Eurozone; to study, present and analyze possible scenarios for the future of the Eurozone and Greece in the short and in the long term. For the purposes of this analysis the author resorts to various sources (literary, statistical, normative etc.) and the research methodology includes methods and techniques of scientific abstraction, historical, methodological and logical approaches, empirical and comparative analysis. Special attention has been paid to various "truths" about the hypercrisis in Greece, the lessons drawn from "the Greek case" for the other countries in the Eurozone and the European Union and the opportunity Greece might get to make the right choice.