While the prospect of a country withdrawing from the eurozone was once considered unthinkable, the possibility of a Greek exit from the economic monetary union has now become a focus of the European Union debt crisis.
The success in recent parliamentary elections of parties opposed to the austerity measures that Greece must enact to receive EU bailout payments has left Athens in a political impasse. As a result, some observers have begun to take seriously a scenario whereby Greece will be forced to exit from the single currency and default on its debts. And as no country has ever left the eurozone and there is no legal provision for this process, the consequences of such a move are not yet clear.
Speaking with Trend Lines about the possible scenarios, Domenico Lombardi, a senior fellow for the Global Economy and Development program at the Brookings Institution, underscored the fact that a Greek exit might compel a larger country like Spain or Italy to follow.