"That blasted euro did us all in," Italy's Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi said in 2005. The German economy, the driving force of the euro, was stalling.

Germany's strong man at the time, Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, ordered a series of ruthless cuts which brought him down, but kept the euro on its feet.

But that was five years ago. Today, during the "save the euro" summit in Brussels, the teetering euro is endangering the prosperity of 500 million citizens.

Why bother
So out goes the Italian operetta. "Philanderer" Berlusconi is now faced with Angela Merkel, the "Teutonic economy monster" as German papers call her these days. Ms Merkel and other champions of frugality like Dutch PM Mark Rutte are increasingly asking, "Why do we bother", having saved the ailing economies of Ireland and Greece, while Berlusconi and other easy-spending south Europeans are keeping mum.

Euro banknote

Photo: Clipart.com

The present euro crisis is an immediate result of the growing chasm in the European Union between disciplined northern countries and debt-amassing countries in the south.

Observers say that Portugal and Spain are likely to be the next countries to call on the temporary rescue fund of 750 millin euros, which is being supplied by the European Union and the International Monetary Fund. Maybe they will be followed by Italy. The temporary fund is set to be made permanent through a minor change in some European treaties.

Permanent fund
Will this fund scare off speculators who are spying out the eurozone's weak spots? Critics have expressed their doubts, preferring the EU to issue reliable euro bonds instead. But for Ms Merkel that would be one step too far. A permanent rescue fund is OK for her, but that's as far as Germany will go. It's now up to the southern countries to get their house in order.

Tijn Sadée is RNW's Brussels correspondent