Sarkozy's formula divides Europe

During a debate with students on Tuesday French President Nicolas Sarkozy advocated a two-speed Europe in which the countries of the Eurozone would be more closely integrated than the remaining countries. The blog Charlemagne's Notebook in the liberal-conservative weekly The Economist says the idea is good but fears that the wrong approach could be taken when put into practice: "Done properly, by keeping the euro open to countries that want to join (like Poland) and deepening the single market for those that do not (like Britain), the creation of a more flexible EU of variable geometry could ease many of the existing tensions. Further enlargement need no longer be so neuralgic; further integration need no longer be imposed on those who do not want it. But done wrongly, as one fears Mr Sarkozy would have it, this will be a recipe for breaking up Europe. Not two-speed Europe but two separate Europes."

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