What I observed around me as I came of age, I later understood, were features of the Cold War battle over the ideals of freedom and enterprise and the kind of political systems and institutions that could best uphold those ideals. In those early days it was hard to imagine the rise of Solidarity and the fall of the wall.
Given such a policy mix, the euro can assume a major international role – in line with the size and economic importance of euroland – and also make its contribution to global stability. III And that brings me to the subject of this conference: ‘The euro as a stabiliser in the international economic system.’ This title expresses great expectations of the future single currency.