The complex situation arising out of the single monetary policy coupled with the indiscipline on the part of some of its constituent economies had the potential to push the European Union (EU) to deeper crisis, said J Frey, professor, Newyork Insitute of Technology, USA.
Delivering the Special Lecture organized by Centre for Trade, Development and Governance (C-TDG) of School of International Relations and Politics at Mahatma Gandhi University, Prof Frey said that as a result of overspending and reduced tax, the smaller countries within the EU have not been able to meet the huge budget deficit, thereby accentuating the severe balance of payment crisis. “ Greece has gone bankrupt. So have Italy, Spain and Ireland,” he said.
Due to the overspending over the years, the crisis has snowballed into a potential threat to the very survival of EU, he added.
Prof. Frey said that the better option for these countries would be to mobilize support from within rather than seeking help fro international financial institutions who according to him “would strangulate the recipient economies as the terms for the loan would be much sever than the crisis itself.
A M Thomas welcomed the gathering. K M Seethi, Mathew Kurian and others spoke.
