ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with the question of European political union and its relationship to monetary union within the evolving international context of the late twentieth century. It shows show why the question of political union suddenly became urgent in 1989 and why monetary union was achieved at the time. The events in Moscow and in other countries belonging to the Warsaw Pact had a decisive influence on the development of the discussions on monetary union and, for a brief period, on political union. La Decennie Mitterrand opened a discussion on monetary union, whereupon not only Thatcher but also H. Kohl declared themselves against both monetary and political union. The dramatic monetary crisis of 1992 not only forced countries like Italy and the UK out of the European Monetary System, it also made it impossible to keep the French franc inside the agreed band of oscillation.
