aware that the real world is not black and white and that rules and actions can be interpreted differently. nonetheless, following the bundesbank ’ s tradition, i believe that it is particularly important for monetary policy to remain true to its principles – all the more so in a monetary union. but there is no place for dogmatism. certain situations not only allow room for a certain degree of flexibility, they also require it. financial market stability is, without question, of great importance for monetary policy. even so, this fact must not lead us to systematically overturn fundamental commitments and responsibilities. this would cast doubt over the legitimacy of an independent monetary policy, jeopardise its primary objective – safeguarding price stability – and compromise the confidence of the general public in monetary policy, which is of vital importance. central banks have currently relieved fiscal policy of part of its burden of supporting individual member states or distressed banks. however, this has brought substantial risks onto the eurosystem ’ s balance sheet. i firmly believe that these risks must now be reduced and on no account increased. it is therefore high time for fiscal policymakers to decide what risks they are willing to take on, both in combating the crisis and going forward. that is not the responsibility of monetary policy. closing remarks ladies and gentlemen, i mentioned at the beginning of this speech that this is a complex and challenging subject. i would like to thank you for giving me the opportunity to discuss this issue in detail here today. i believe that the current developments are of vital importance for the future of the euro. the democratically elected parliaments must decide on the future fundamental design of european monetary union. this could mean maintaining the agreed framework and correcting the incentives so that they are conducive to stability. alternatively, it could involve undertaking a major shift to a fiscal union, including a fundamental transfer of key areas of responsibility from national parliaments to democratically legitimised european bodies. however, i believe that the middle road embarked upon through some recent decisions is leading us in a direction that is not stable in the long term. thank you for your attention. bis central bankers ’ speeches

burkhard balz : european dialogue & finissage closing by mr burkhard balz, member of the executive board of the deutsche bundesbank, of the joint art exhibition of the deutsche bundesbank and the national bank of belgium " building a dialogue. two corporate collections of contemporary art ", brussels, 10 september 2019. * * * 1 welcome ladies and gentlemen, members of the european parliament, representatives of the european commission and the member states, dear tim, dear fellow central bankers, dear olivier, the closing of an exhibition is not an everyday occurrence for a central banker. it is therefore a truly special pleasure for me to be with you here today to bring the joint national bank of belgium and deutsche bundesbank art exhibition to a ceremonious end. for four months, visitors were able to experience impressive works of contemporary art, many of which had previously not been accessible to the public. the exhibition is a first of its kind, and it certainly proved worthwhile. the constant flow of visitors speaks for itself! 2 building a dialogue building a dialogue! this was the ambitious aim of the exhibition. what we wanted was not just a dialogue between the national bank of belgium and the deutsche bundesbank, but also a dialogue between the observer and the work of art as well as between the observers themselves. the careful thought that went into choosing the contemporary artworks for this exhibition and this impressive exhibition site, located in the heart of brussels, have provided the perfect setting for this dialogue. many of the works explore societal and political topics, which do not stop at national borders. architecture and urban development, war, cultural diversity, capitalism and the global financial crisis ; these topics concern us all. they are highly topical even today. i ’ m sure that many of the members of the european parliament and representatives of the european institutions here will agree with me on that score. and for that reason, too, brussels is a very suitable venue for this exhibition : because it is here, where the peoples of europe are in continuous dialogue with one another to find answers to the challenges facing the eu. building a dialogue! this motto applies to us central bankers as well. after all, we share the responsibility for the single european currency, the euro. and our common mandate is clear : to maintain price stability in the euro area as a whole. however, monetary policy is not the only central bank topic where dialog is essential. being responsible for payment and settlement systems i experience on a