Greece's Debt Crisis: A National Tragedy of European Proportions

Abstract

Contrary to the view of most analysts, Nikolaos Zahariadis argues that Greece's debt crisis is a European Union shortcoming with national and global dimensions. This does not mean that Greece's profligate spending does not play a major role in this tragedy. Zahariadis states that, instead, viewing it simply as a Greek problem that needs to be isolated and “corrected” will not solve a fundamental issue that underlies Europe's predicament. There cannot be successful monetary integration without robust movement toward fiscal and perhaps political integration.