"You can check out anytime you like, but you can never leave." [View all]

[another_liberal]

You can "never leave" the European Union, that is. Or so an announcement by a spokesperson for the E. U. Commission would seem to imply.

Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras (R) welcomes European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker (AFP)


EU Commission on Grexit: 'Euro membership is irrevocable'


Amid growing concerns whether upcoming elections in Greece will lead to the country exiting the euro zone, an EU Commission spokesperson said membership cannot be revoked. European Commission spokesperson for Jobs, Growth, Investment, EMU (Economic and Monetary Union) and the European Semester, Annika Breidthardt called membership "irrevocable" during a press briefing on Monday. Commenting on Greece's possible exit - dubbed "Grexit," the Brussels official refused to speculate on the topic, saying there is no legal mechanism to be applied for the country to leave the euro zone.

The remarks followed a Sunday article in Germany's Der Spiegel magazine, which said that Germany believed the euro zone was stable enough and had sufficient rescue mechanisms to survive the potential ramifications of Greece leaving the single currency union. Citing sources in the German government, the journal report said that both Chancellor Angela Merkel and Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble thought the potential Greek exit "manageable." Germany's Vice Chancellor and Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel later said Germany wanted Greece to remain in the euro zone and there were no plans to the contrary, Reuters reported.

If [Grexit] happens, it will point out that EU cannot solve any kind of problems in the context of the mechanism that it has invented, this will be very bad for the euro in any case," Dimitri Mardas of Aristotle University of Thessaloniki told RT, although adding he did not believe the country's exit was a "real case."

On Monday, the issue was also addressed by French President Francois Hollande, who said it was "up to Greeks" to decide whether to stay or quit the single currency union. "As for Greece remaining in the euro zone, Greece alone can decide," Hollande said in an interview with France Inter radio, as quoted by Reuters. He added that the nation was "free to determine their own destiny."

(snip)

Read more at: http://rt.com/news/220039-greece-eurozone-exit-crisis/