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I think we can say, in face of this crisis – it was the worst crisis of the globalisation era – we fought back together. Under the most difficult circumstances we managed to reinforce the foundations of our European house when it started to shake. A new awareness emerged that we could no longer avoid difficult decisions that would determine whether Europe remain an area of stability, prosperity and freedom. It was not easy, I have to tell you. I have been, these five years, leading the Commission and the Commission is – I say sometimes – the 'engine room' of the European Union. I have been in contact with all the governments of Europe, not only the governments of the most vulnerable countries, but also of the richest countries. And as responsible leaders you know it is not easy to have an agreement between 28 countries – and in the Euro area now 18 countries – that have different financial cultures. It is not only the difference between Finland and Greece: There are differences between Germany and France. And to put all these together in a democratic way is simply a... real Herculean task.
And so it is true, some of us – and the Commission was in the frontline – would like to have solutions faster, more ambitious. Yes, it is true. but democracy is not so rapid and cannot take decisions in such a speedy manner like the markets. And so we were in fact building the lifeboats in the middle of a storm. And this, I think, has to be recognised. Because it is easy sometimes to say 'ok, things are not going well'. Of course we know the difficulties. But we should, as responsible citizens, think what would be the alternative. the alternative would be to let Europe disintegrate, to have the currency disappear, to have dis-ordinary defaults, bankrupts… That would be the alternative. And... we were in certain moments very close to it. Not only in the countries that have programmes but also Spain and Italy were very very close to catastrophic situations. And then we could have a real threat to dis-stability not only of the euro area but of the European economy.
That's why I ask you and I ask all the European forces that are now going to the European elections – and I am now speaking as President of the Commission and, as President of the Commission, my party is Europe, I am not taking sides – but I ask you to have this argument with the citizens. I believe that most of the citizens are reasonable people, they know things cannot come like that easily. And to ask about alternatives – we have been correct in some of the programmes. We have in many cases – like in Greece, in Portugal, even in Ireland and also in France or Spain – we have given more time for the fiscal adjustment. But if we had not shown from the beginning that those countries were able to correct some imbalances, what would happen is that this lack of confidence – without confidence there is no investment, without investment there is no growth.
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Can we say that everything we have done was right? Probably not. The European Union is not perfect and we are here to correct many problems. But what I ask from you and from European citizens is: If you are not happy with the policy, correct it, explain your position. But do not turn your back on Europe. That will be the most important mistake to make. There are now some extremists and populists from extreme right to the extreme left that want to present that Europe is the problem. Look at what they say: They are always against openness, they are against globalisation, they are against the freedom of circulation – a basic principle that we have in Europe, the freedom to go to another country, to study, to work, to live in that country – and they are all against the European Union. That is something, from the extreme right to the extreme left, that they have in common. And so I hope that the pro-European parties, the main three forces, those that believe that Europe is something that we should fight for, will have the courage to leave the comfort zone and to say 'no, we want to make this Europe better, we are for Europe, we cannot accept this policy with the evident no alternative, that's great'. But not put at cause this great achievement that is the European Union. Because I sincerely believe that in all our history, even in history of mankind, there was never a project of peace, of putting together countries that were before enemies, like the one we have in the European Union...
In this difficult political moment, we have to make the pedagogy about Europe. We may face a situation that is a paradox. The economic situation is improving, slow, not enough, but it's improving. But the political situation can get worse. Why? Because the citizens do not feel yet the improvement of the macroeconomic intigators and because we are going to have elections where the extremist forces can gain some power. This is why it's important that we work together to counter the myths and caricatures on Europe and to present our electors with facts and arguments on Europe. That's why it's important to refute extremist discourses and we need to keep a rational debate on Europe, on what Europe delivers.
Subsidiarity is not a luxury but a key democratic principle. We should better concentrate European action on the real issues that matter and can best be dealt with at the European level.
We also have to be honest what it means to share a currency. If we share a currency, we need more integration, because at the end the credibility depends on the solidity and credibility of the institutions that are behind it. And I was very happy when the day before yesterday I heard the President of the ECB saying that the euro now is an island of stability. Can you imagine, some time ago us saying that? This is why I think it's important to keep Europe an inclusive project for all its members.