I have the most profound respect for the Department of Justice and the FTC. We in Europe are a younger and I would say junior institution to the historical antitrust experience of the US.

Growth in any individual European country has to be the result of policies for growth pursued in that country consistent with budgetary discipline.

If the euro becomes a factor promoting Europe's drifting apart, then the foundation of the European project is destroyed.

If governments let themselves be fully bound by the decisions of their parliaments without protecting their own freedom to act, a breakup of Europe would be a more probable outcome than deeper integration.

There is no government in Europe where ministers go through that kind of confirmation process, which in fact is modeled on the way the U.S. cabinet members are confirmed.

In the area of macroeconomic policies, I think we'll see more centralization, like in the budgetary sphere.

Europe has to avoid old prejudices and new ones. That means north versus south, rich versus poor.