Overview

The formation of an economic and monetary union among 12 of Europe's leading economies is an exciting experiment in modern political economies. Can a single monetary policy satisfy the needs of 12 very different countries? Does the establishment of a European central bank herald the emergence of a new, more federal European Union? Will the Euro come to rival the dollar for world leadership? Or will it collapse as conflicts between participating countries work to tear the European economic and monetary union apart? This volume offers surprising answers to these questions. By focusing attention on who wins and who loses from the creation of the Euro, Erik Jones argues that the diversity of participating countries is a strength rather than a weakness, that Europe's single currency helps to maintain such diversity rather than to eliminate it, and that while the Euro may never rival the dollar it is nevertheless unlikely to fall apart. As long as the politics of EMU differs from one country to the next, the monetary union is unlikely to face concerted or destabilizing opposition. Thus, the work concludes, EMU should be as difficult to dismantle as it was to create.

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9780847690343

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The most lucid, clearly argued, and theoretically sophisticated political science treatment I have ever seen on EMU. The Politics of Economic and Monetary Union will no doubt become a definitive work on the most audacious experiment ever in European integration. -- John Peterson, University of Glasgow The Politics of Economic and Monetary Union is valuable for its criticism of more systematic views of integration, and particularly for its careful dissection of rationalist expectations about monetary unions. International Studies Review There is a lot of simplicity and dogmatism in debates concerning EMU. The book's greatest merit is its capacity to cut through this confusion and to offer pragmatic and evidence-based arguments in a genuine political economy analysis demonstrating an interdisciplinary grasp of the matter. International Journal Of Political Science A fiercely intelligent book. The scope of Jones's knowledge of the politics and economics of EMU is remarkable, as is his capacity to communicate its complexity in accessible terms. As the only analysis I know that stretches from the technology of the single currency to its symbolism, it deserves and will surely attract a wide and varied audience. This is not 'just' a book about EMU; it is also an intriguing and entertaining account of what 'Europe' is and what it is becoming. -- Martin Rhodes, European University Institute

The most lucid, clearly argued, and theoretically sophisticated political science treatment I have ever seen on EMU. (It) will no doubt become a definitive work on the most audacious experiment ever in European integration .- -John Peterson, University of Glasgow; A fiercely intelligent book. The scope of Jones's knowledge of the politics and economics of EMU is remarkable, as is his capacity to communicate its complexity in accessible terms. As the only analysis I know that stretches from the technology of the single currency to its symbolism, it deserves and will surely attract a wide and varied audience. This is not 'just' a book about EMU; it is also an intriguing and entertaining account of what 'Europe' is and what it is becoming .--Martin Rhodes, European University Institute

Author Information

Erik Jones is resident associate professor of European Studies at the Johns Hopkins Bologna Center.

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