“Merkozy” is not alone

In recent days a breeze of relief has been blowing across Europe. It may not yet be a wind of change, but it is a quite symbolic development. Meeting in Strasbourg on 24 November for yet more talks on possible solutions to the debt crisis, “Merkozy” was not alone. Italian Prime Minister Mario Monti was also there, and he demonstrated that he had no intention of taking on the role of page boy for the Franco-German couple.

This is the couple born from a marriage of convenience whose (economic) health declining. According to several observers, France is already on the point of losing its precious AAA rating, while German debt has lost a lot of its charm — as demonstrated by the half bungled bond sale on 23 November.

This is the couple whose quarrels over the resources that are required to counter speculative attacks on sovereign debt — the launch ofeurobonds and loans to states in exchange for the inclusion of austerity and fiscal harmonisation measures in EU treaties — has kept the Eurozone in suspense, while every additional day spent in limbo has brought the monetary union closer to breaking apart.

While Italy’s press has hailed the country’s “return to Europe,” in the wake of years of disinterest and Berlusconian bloopers, the enhanced role attributed to Europe’s third largest economy, represented by a highly respected former European commissioner, has raised hopes of an end to the deadlock in which Euroland finds itself.

Although Monti might not be able to nor wish to play the role of referee between Paris and Berlin, he is very well placed to act as a mediator: a mediator who — and he was keen to make this point in Strasbourg to his two colleagues who sing the praises of the intergovernmental method — considers that the best approach to resolving the EU’s political and economic crisis will involve a strengthening of the community’s method and institutions. In this regard, he can depend on the support of Commission President José Manuel Barroso, who has recently advocated such a policy.

All of this will no doubt reassure those who feared that Merkozy would be replaced by a ménage à trois directorate for which European journalists will delight in finding a new name: Sarmonkel, Merkozonti, Merkonti, AnNiMa or MMS are just some of the suggestions that have been mooted. But although expectations are rising, time is running out.

Translated from the French by Mark McGovern