That will likely take time: The plan released on Sunday envisions its more-ambitious measures, such as a shared budget for the eurozone, possibly taking 10 years to come into effect, reflecting the political obstacles that now stand in the way of drawing the its 19 disparate nations more closely together.
Despite those hurdles, senior European officials who have pushed for the plan say fundamental changes to the eurozone are needed to prevent a repeat of the bloc’s debt crisis, which was caused in large part by wages and prices in the south rising much faster than they did in the north.
The eurozone has proved unable to reverse the loss of competitiveness in the south, leaving those countries grappling with unemployment rates exceeding 20% in some cases and little prospect of a significant recovery soon.
Greece, in particular, remains engulfed in crisis, and is running out of time to reach a deal that would avert its exit from the eurozone.
…click on the above link to read the rest of the article…
