The European Union and the economic and financial crisis

The global financial and economic crisis has severely hit the 27 member states of the European Union (EU). This situation is particularly true for the Eurozone, which forms the most integrated part of the EU. In 2009, for the first time since its creation ten years earlier, the Eurozone slipped into recession, resulting in a massive increase in unemployment and pressure on public finances. Later in the year, a sovereign debt crisis started to unfold, which accelerated to such a degree in 2011, that the end of the single currency is now openly debated.