Interview of Jonathan Carr of Financial Times with Chancelor Helmut Schmidt (11 July 1978)

Abstract

This interview with Jonathan Carr (Financial Times, 11 July 1978) was published several days after the EC summit in Bremen (6–7 July 1978) and a few days prior to the summit of Western industrial countries (G-7) in Bonn. By chance—the Federal Republic had taken up the EC presidency on 1 July 1978—both summit conferences took place in the Federal Republic. But this also demonstrated the importance the government led by Helmut Schmidt had gained in central questions of international economic and currency cooperation. Here and elsewhere Schmidt countered the misunderstanding, widespread among the public, that the G-7 is a kind of a gigantic cabinet meeting of the participating governments that will take concrete decisions. The goal is rather a responsible exchange of opinions and the emergence of a consensus concerning a global economic idea that will supplement national policies. A greater degree of commitment was to be expected from the outcomes of the EC summit in Bremen. Here the other governments, with the exception of Great Britain, had agreed in principle to the concept of a European Currency System developed by Schmidt and Giscard d’Estaing. At the same time, Schmidt argued that the European currency project would help to stabilize not only the currency of the participating countries but also the US dollar.