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    The reason in his opinion was the misunderstood European integration and the abuse of it. Regarding the term "solidarity", which has been widely discussed since the outbreak of the crisis, it should have been replaced with "stability" because the European Union will not be stable if the states do not develop in parallel and at a similar pace. "What is the difference comparing today's Europe with that of the 1980s when it was expanding to the south or with that of the 1990s when it was expanding to the east, or even with that of 2000 when the euro zone was created? There were ambitious goals then and steps were taken for decades ahead. Today, nobody offers a vision of how he or she wants to see Europe in 20 years," said Thassos Yanitsis.
     The professor believes that the reason for the current crisis is the fact that these ambitious goals have not been completely achieved and that there were no prerequisites for the creation of the euro zone, they are absent now and it is not clear whether we will ever achieve them. "No country is able to carry the European Union on its back. Germany is big, it is very big but even it cannot do so alone. We must all together set to work and help the Union emerge from the crisis," he said in conclusion.
    Deputy Foreign Minister for European Affairs Dimitris Kourkoulas admitted that this is the most significant crisis in the history of the European Union when its leaders have to deal with high budget deficits, reduce the recession and unemployment and, at the same time, meet the citizens' expectations of a welfare state." My view is that Europe can survive only if it turns to the individual persons and their problems. I know that the welfare state is accused of the large deficits but its underestimation will lead to scepticism about Europe’s future. Its role is not only to help the poor but also to give each citizen a proper role in society," said the diplomat.
    He recalled that many people blame the crisis for the growth of racist, anti-Semitic and neo-Nazi movements, stating that the Great Depression in America gave rise to Franklin Roosevelt’s economic policies known as the New Deal. Therefore, in the elections in May 2014, the citizens must vote for European development rather than for national parties and issues. Dimitris Kourkoulas declared his support for power decentralization in Brussels and for easier access of citizens' initiatives to the European institutions.
    According to George Pagoulatos, Europe cannot wait until the elections in May 2014 because if we do not act immediately the elected Parliament will be the worst ever as it will be full of extreme movements and parties. "The Union must act immediately. It must take urgent measures to reduce unemployment by investing fresh money in the market. The European Union must find tools for direct financing of healthy small- and medium-sized enterprises because only then will it reduce the recession. Thirdly, it should immediately proceed to a bank union to make equal the cost of lending," suggested the professor. He believes that right now, the entire burden of the crisis is falling on the middle class and this is a mistake because the burden of emerging from the crisis has to be balanced between all members of society.