Euro debate ignites in East European Union states

Prague

WHILE Greece may be at risk of an unplanned exit, policymakers in the European Union's east are reopening the debate about whether to join the euro area after years of shunning the currency during the global financial crisis.

In the Czech Republic, the prime minister said on Wednesday that joining the euro soon would help the economy after the president challenged the central bank's long-standing resistance with a vow to appoint policymakers who favour the common currency. In Poland, the main divide between the top two candidates in the May 10 presidential election is whether the region's biggest economy should ditch the zloty.