Howse,  Robert, (2015), “The Deal on Greek Debt: Political Gamechanger for Europe, Tactical Retreat (not Surrender) by Tsipras”, Verfassungsblog.de, 13 July The conventional wisdom, delivered before anyone could really ponder the fine print of the Greek debt deal, is that Tsipras surrendered to the creditors in a humiliating defeat.  His referendum and prior tenacity in negotiations proved futile,according to the predominant account that has emerged in the media and the …Read More

Scarpetta, Vincenzo, (2015), “Hollande proposes a Eurozone government”, Open Europe blog, 20 July Almost inevitably, the Greek crisis has reignited the debate over the future of Eurozone integration. Whatever happens with Greece – the country’s euro exit is definitely not off the table – it is clear that, at least in terms of rhetoric and intentions, we are likely to witness a renewed push for closer ties among the countries sharing …Read More

Techau, Jan, (2015), “Political Union Now!”, Carnegie Europe, 13 July Let’s put aside Angela Merkel’s economic wisdom in the Greek crisis for the moment. To be sure, as an economics layman with a penchant for fiscal conservatism, Merkel’s alleged toughness sounded reasonable to me, partly because it was well cushioned by enormous generosity. I think she basically had it right, and that her strategy for the euro crisis was better than …Read More

Slaughter, Anne-Marie, (2015), “Europe’s Civil War”, Project Syndicate, 21 July The negotiations leading up to the latest tentative deal on Greece’s debt brought into relief two competing visions of the European Union: the flexible, humane, and political union espoused by France, and the legalistic and economy-focused union promoted by Germany. As François Heisbourg recently wrote, “By openly contemplating the forced secession of Greece [from the eurozone], Germany has demonstrated that …Read More