Toward Monetary Union of the European Community

A bstract . European Community monetary integration has received periodic attention often as a result of financial crises but has now evolved into its major aim. To achieve this goal the European Monetary System was established in 1979. It was designed to provide a tool, the Exchange Rate Mechanism , for exchange rate stabilization and convergence of economic and monetary policies. To give further impetus to monetary integration the Maastricht Treaty was approved in December 1991. Experiences with the operation of the European Monetary System show that there is no conclusive evidence that it has disciplined the monetary and fiscal policies of all its members. More recently, Germany's insistence on a tight monetary- policy, to fight the inflation that resulted from unification costs, has brought turmoil in European financial markets and has dealt a serious blow to the system. Furthermore, the ensuing recession and its impact on the European economies make improbable that the timetable of the Maastricht Treaty will be met.