How and why the Euro was introduced

NARRATOR: In January 2002, the introduction of the Euro is cause for celebration. In many countries, the vision of a single European currency has become reality. The story of the Euro begins towards the end of the 1970s at the Rambouillet Palace around the fringes of the economic summit. The German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt and the French President Valéry Giscard d’Estaing are searching for a European answer to the U.S. Dollar.

VALERY GISCARD D’ESTAING: "I knew that I would never move on without strong German backing. So in our mutual relationship it is true that we probably have a little more space for initiative but the support of Helmut was absolutely a requirement."

NARRATOR: The so-called Ecu is not yet a currency, but it is used as an accounting unit for international payment transactions.

HELMUT SCHMIDT: "We do feel perhaps not like fathers, but like grandfathers of the common currency, the Euro."

NARRATOR: The introduction of the Euro is accelerated to avoid the possibility that the German reunification could cause problems for the European Union. France's head of state Mitterrand is concerned and issues conditions for Chancellor Helmut Kohl.

JACQUES ATTALI: "Of course Mitterrand viewed all this as upsetting the balance. That's the reason why the impression arose that he was against a German unification. And he really was against an unconditional unification. It's probable that had Mitterrand not insisted on some conditions, there would be no Euro today."

NARRATOR: Was the Euro the price for the reunification of Germany?

HELMUT KOHL: "I don't understand it when some people say, you sacrificed the German Mark on the altar of the European fatherland to achieve German unification. If I want German unification, it was clear to me, just like Adenauer, that there are two positions of the same importance. German unification and the European Union are two sides of the same coin."

NARRATOR: Many find it difficult to give up their old currency, but the German Mark is discontinued. For decades, it was a symbol for stability and prosperity. And the Euro? The number of supporters is fast-growing.

WOLFRAM WEIMER: "I think that the Euro was sort of the direct continuation of the German Mark. We have transposed the good things about the Deutschmark to this European currency, and in this sense the Euro is also a great German success."

NARRATOR: Whether it is a success or not – one thing is certain. With the new currency, Europeans now have something else in common. The Euro is both a symbol and a challenge for the unity of Europe.