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In Order To Begin To Grasp And Analyze The Roots Of The

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In order to begin to grasp and analyze the roots of the Greek financial crisis and gain a sense of the political and economic disenfranchisement and nationalism the Greeks endured in the wake of this crisis, a brief history of the Euro is imperative to understanding this resurgence of economic nationalism.
The Eurozone, the economic and monetary union of 19 of the 27 member countries of the European Union, is far from excellent health. At the root of its multi-causal ailment is the Euro, one of the grander experiments in economics in modern history. The Euro sought to be the cornerstone of the multi decade campaign for the full unification of Europe in the ruble of World War II. Politicians conveyed magnificent ideals of full economic and …show more content…

It was clear that Europe was no longer the economic powerhouse that it was pre-war, and handful of Western European leaders achieved the first step towards economic unification in 1957 with the signing of the Treaty of Rome, which created the European Economic Community (ECC), with six member states comprising of France, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and West Germany. The community sought economic integration within member states that were distinctly different societies with unique cultures, languages, and currencies, striving for the ultimate goal of creating a single market. For the first time in European history, governments that have historically waged longstanding wars with one another forwent a portion of their sovereignty, (albeit regulatory powers over a portion of their economies) to a newfound international institution, “a European authority enjoying executive powers to take decisions in the interests of all six countries”. The Treaty of Rome was emblematic of a unique turning point in European history, that sparked the movement towards massive political and economic cooperation. The treaty sought to further strengthen economic and trade cooperation, remove barriers to trade, and to adopt a common commercial policy towards other foreign trade partners. Over the subsequent decades,

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