Euro founder calls for ‘catastrophic’ currency to be broken up

"Oskar Lafontaine, the German finance minister at the launch of the euro, has called for a break-up of the single currency to let southern Europe recover, warning that the current course is “leading to disaster”.

“The economic situation is worsening from month to month and unemployment has reached a level that puts democratic structures ever more in doubt,” he said.

“The Germans have not yet realized that southern Europe, including France, will be forced by their current misery to fight back against German hegemony sooner or later.”"