The best thing Europe can do therefore is to cope as best as possible in the light of the circumstances. This was, in brief, my take on the euro - neither intrinsically good nor bad, more political than economic in nature, the biggest leap in the history of European integration, and therefore high risk. First, and most immediately, but not most importantly, comes the questions of how should the euro-zone be represented internationally. These meetings are already overcrowded with officials, and the prospects of Europeans who cannot even agree among each other is not particular enticing. Unfortunately, the euro-zone is not quite complete yet in terms of its political development.
Economic policy remains in the hands of national governments.
Governments may have embarked on a slow process of policy co-ordination, but the division of responsibility is clear. Fiscal and structural policies fall in the realm of the nations. Europe's partners should understand that this process is invariably messy. But there is nothing one can do about it, least of all from abroad. The call for a single political and central banking representative at the G-7 ignores the fundamental political realities of Europe.