It is time to prepare for the unthinkable: there is now a significant probability the euro will not survive in its current form. This is not because I am predicting the failure by European leaders to agree a deal. In fact, I believe they will. My concern is not about failure to agree, but the consequences of an agreement. I am writing this column before the results of Sunday’s European summit were known. It appeared that a final agreement would not be reached until Wednesday. Under consideration has been a leveraged European financial stability facility, perhaps accompanied by new instruments from the International Monetary Fund.
眼下已到了做最坏打算的时候：欧元很可能无法以目前的形式存续下来。这并不是因为我预言欧洲领导人将无法达成某种协议。实际上，我认为他们会达成协议。我担心的并不是达不成协议，而是协议所带来的后果。在写这篇专栏文章时，我并不知道周日欧盟峰会的结果。看起来，最终协议要到周三才能达成。考虑之中的方案是一种杠杆化的欧洲金融稳定安排(European Financial Stability Facility，简称EFSF)，或许再辅之以国际货币基金组织(IMF)的某种新工具。