This is a decisive moment for the EU. The Eurozone is at a crossroads and public support for both the euro and the EU is corroding. Tackling the crisis stretched governments’ solvency to breaking points.

The aggravation of Europe’s debt problems is provoking political conflict both within Member States and between them. Who bears the bank losses, bondholders or taxpayers?

Among the first interested with the crisis\' outcome are the EU Member States who have not adopted the common European currency. As for the new EU members, so far only Slovakia, Slovenia, Malta and Cyprus and Estonia have the euro.

These pressing questions will be addressed on 14-16 March in Brussels during a seminar co-organised by the European Journalism Centre (EJC) and the European Commission\'s Directorate-General for Economic and Financial Affairs.

All EU Member States form part of an Economic and Monetary Union, which can be described as an advanced stage of economic integration based on a single market. It involves close co-ordination of economic and fiscal policies and, for those countries fulfilling certain conditions, a single monetary policy and a single currency.

Under the Treaty of the European Union, all EU Member States have to join the Euro area once the necessary conditions are fulfilled, except Denmark and the United Kingdom which have negotiated an opt-out clause that allows them to remain outside. Sweden is also expected to join in the future.

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