On 1 January 1999 eleven European Union Member States (Belgium,
Germany, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Austria,
Portugal and Finland) adopted the euro as their national currency (in scriptural
form). These Member States were selected by the European Council in early May
1998 to participate in the European Monetary Union, since they had fulfilled the
convergence criteria laid down in the Maastricht Treaty.
On 19 June 2000, the EU Council at its meeting in Santa Maria da
Feira, having assessed that Greece fulfils the requirements of the Treaty,
approved its accession to the euro area as a twelfth member as from 1.1. 2001.
At the same time, the irrevocable conversion rate of the drachma vis à vis the
euro was set at GRD 340.750 effective from 1 January 2001, which is equal to its
central rate within the Exchange Rate Mechanism (ERM II), applying as of 17
January 2000.
and bla bla bla but who cares?
In other words the money used in
Greece is the Euro and the drachma is history. I was in Greece when they went over to the Euro. I hope I am here when they go back to the drachma because the euro made everything expensive. The euro is a disaster in Greece. Probably in Europe too.
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