# taz.de -- After the Euro Summit in Brussels: Thus fails Europe
       
       > Thanks to a loathsome alliance, Merkel and Schäuble have been able to
       > impose all of Germany’s demands on Greece. The result is a regime of
       > sanctions and coercion.
       
 (IMG) Bild: It’s beautiful: the Greek euro.
       
       „If the euro fails then Europe fails“, Chancellor Angela Merkel once said.
       But Europe also fails if the monetary union degenerates into an
       authoritarian regime of sanctions and coercion. That is precisely what
       happened at the chaotic Euro Summit in Brussels.
       
       In an unprecedented walkover, Merkel and her Finance Minister, Wolfgang
       Schäuble, have imposed all of Germany’s demands. They boil down to
       punishing Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and his Syriza party, and making a
       ward of Athens.
       
       Not only are East German Treuhand style privatisation plans next on the
       cards, the hated troika is once again set to take centre stage in Hellas.
       At the same time, the parliament is being stripped of its power; it must
       rubber-stamp all austerity and reform demands, and allow automatic cuts to
       its budgets.
       
       It was our admired Mr. Schäuble who conceived this coup. With his now
       infamous Grexit paper he had already set the course prior to the summit. In
       doing so, he accommodated the wishes of countries such as Finland, which
       want to force Greece out of the euro and which have been demanding
       collateral for any future aid.
       
       ## Hardliners from Helsinki
       
       The alliance with the Finns is not new; Schäuble has been banking on the
       hardliners from Helsinki for years. With their help, he also imposed his
       terms upon Cyprus. This time however the right-wing populist „Finns Party“
       are part of the government in Helsinki – a loathsome alliance, of which
       Schäuble should be ashamed.
       
       Just as shameful is the way Merkel and Schäuble have snubbed their
       traditional partnerships. After forging their alliance with Finland and
       other hardliners, they simply ignored all demands from Italy or France.
       
       It’s no wonder that the Italian press is already referring to a new Berlin
       Wall. France too is appalled at the authoritarian and egotistical German
       approach; Schäuble’s threat of a „temporary“ Grexit had President Francois
       Hollande seeing red. He called the proposed five-year Grexit unacceptable,
       insisting that Greece remain in the eurozone.
       
       ## German fiscal pact
       
       Hollande successfully averted the temporary Grexit – but at what price? The
       debt relief that Paris was demanding prior to the summit is now off the
       table. Instead, Athens is obliged to implement the German fiscal pact this
       very week – precisely the strict budget regulations that Hollande wanted to
       get rid of following his election win in 2012!
       
       One is almost tempted to admit that the Greek ex-Finance Minister Yanis
       Varoufakis was right. On the Friday before the summit he cautioned about
       Schäuble in his blog, accusing him of wanting to make an example of Greece
       in order to discipline France. Varoufakis certainly wasn’t far off the
       mark.
       
       Translation: Hans Kellett
       
       13 Jul 2015
       
       ## AUTOREN
       
 (DIR) Eric Bonse
       
       ## TAGS
       
 (DIR) taz-Texte zur Euro-Krise auf Englisch
 (DIR) Schwerpunkt Krise in Griechenland
 (DIR) Griechenland
 (DIR) Europa
 (DIR) taz international
 (DIR) taz-Texte zur Euro-Krise auf Englisch
 (DIR) taz-Texte zur Euro-Krise auf Englisch
 (DIR) taz-Texte zur Euro-Krise auf Englisch
 (DIR) taz-Texte zur Euro-Krise auf Englisch
 (DIR) taz-Texte zur Euro-Krise auf Englisch
 (DIR) taz-Texte zur Euro-Krise auf Englisch
 (DIR) taz-Texte zur Euro-Krise auf Englisch
 (DIR) taz-Texte zur Euro-Krise auf Englisch
       
       ## ARTIKEL ZUM THEMA
       
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       What kind of a Europe do we want? Surely one that values solidarity. The
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       The outcome of the referendum is clear. Now more than ever it’s up to the
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 (DIR) Grexit and the Eurozone: Destroyed confidence
       
       The monetary system is based on confidence, and that confidence has been
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 (DIR) Angela Merkel and the Greek crisis: Is the Chancellor invulnerable?
       
       Angela Merkel is prepared to push through a third aid package for Athens.
       The opposition accuses her of wanting to help the Greek banks, not its
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 (DIR) Crisis in Greece: Europe’s helpless leftists
       
       Syriza’s politics was a proposal for the system to show good will. This was
       both naïve and impassioned.