On 27 October 1977, Roy Jenkins, President of the European Commission, gives an address at the European University Institute (EUI) in Florence on the establishment of a European monetary union. He presents it as the surest way of reviving economic growth and combating inflation and unemployment.

On 27 October 1977, at the European University Institute (EUI) in Florence, Roy Jenkins, President of the European Commission, gives an address in favour of the implementation of European monetary union. Two months later, the monthly publication 30 jours d’Europe analyses Mr Jenkins’ proposals and highlights their strong points.

In June 1978, the monthly publication 30 jours d’Europe underlines the importance of the Bremen European Council, to be held on 6 and 7 July, for the revival of economic and monetary union (EMU).

On 5 July 1978, the German daily newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung focuses on the joint initiative of the German Chancellor, Helmut Schmidt, and the French President, Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, to draw up a plan establishing a European monetary fund, designed to maintain monetary stability in Europe.

On 7 July 1978, meeting at the Bremen European Council, the Nine propose giving fresh impetus to monetary cooperation through the establishment of a European Monetary System (EMS).

On 7 July 1978, following the Bremen European Council, Helmut Schmidt, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and President-in-Office of the Council of the European Communities, holds a press conference during which he confirms the Nine’s decision to establish a European Monetary System (EMS).

On 8 July 1978, the day after the Bremen European Council, the German daily newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung enthusiastically announces the establishment of a European Monetary System (EMS) intended to secure an area of monetary stability in Europe.

On 14 and 15 September 1978, the German Chancellor, Helmut Schmidt, and the French President, Valéry Giscard d’Estaing, meet in Aachen to take Franco-German cooperation a step further.

At the Brussels European Council meeting on 5 December 1978, the Nine adopt a resolution on the establishment and the rules on the functioning of the European Monetary System (EMS).

On 5 December 1978, following the Brussels European Council, Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, French President, holds a press conference during which he announces the Nine's decision to establish, on 1 January 1979, the European Monetary System (EMS).

On 21 December 1978, German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt delivers a speech to the Bundestag concerning the outcomes of the last European Council meeting, held in Brussels. This meeting was marked by the decision by the Nine to introduce a European Monetary System (EMS) by 1 January 1979.

On 5 December 1978, the Brussels European Council adopts a resolution concerning the establishment and rules for the operation of the European Monetary System (EMS). The photo shows a demonstration for a single European currency.

On 7 December 1978, the German daily newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung describes the operation of the new European Monetary System and assesses the role played by the accounting currency of the Nine: the ECU.

In March 1979, the French cartoonist, Plantu, illustrates the establishment of the European Monetary System (EMS) and outlines the role played by the new currency unit of the Nine, the ecu (ECU).

On 13 March 1979, the European monetary system (EMS) and the European Currency Unit (ECU), which had been adopted by the Nine, enter into force.

In his memoirs, Roy Jenkins, President of the European Commission from 1977 to 1981, recalls the proposal submitted by the German Chancellor, Helmut Schmidt, to the Copenhagen European Council, held on 7 and 8 April 1978, with a view to the establishment of a new European Monetary System.

En mars 1979, François-Xavier Ortoli, vice-président de la Commission des Communautés européennes, énonce dans la revue fédéraliste L'Europe en formation les trois objectifs de la mise en oeuvre du Système monétaire européen (SME).

On 14 March 1979, the day after the implementation of the European Monetary System (EMS), the French daily newspaper Le Monde describes the operation of the EMS and highlights its impact on the European currency exchange market.

Table showing the evolution of currencies within the ecu 'basket' from 1975 to 1987.

Table listing the central parity readjustments made from 1979, the year when the European Monetary System (EMS) came into operation, to the year 1990.

On 17 April 1980, the European Parliament reiterates the main objectives of the European Monetary System (EMS) and emphasises the importance of effective coordination of the Nine’s economic policies at Community level.

On 25 September 1981, Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa, Director-General of Economic and Financial Affairs at the European Commission, reveals to the Italian Chamber of Commerce for Great Britain, in London, the difficulties posed by the entry of the pound sterling into the European monetary system (EMS).

In his editorial of 5 and 6 October 1981, Emanuele Gazzo, Director-General of Agence Europe, welcomes the latest readjustment of parities within the European monetary system (EMS) and attempts to determine its impact.

On 13 March 1989, Jacques Delors, President of the European Commission, gives the Belgian daily newspaper Le Soir a summary of the ten years of operation of the European Monetary System (EMS).

The November/December 1980 edition of the publication 30 jours d’Europe looks at the position of Roy Jenkins, President of the European Commission, with regard to the gradual implementation of the European Monetary System (EMS) and the adoption of the ECU.

The ECU (European Currency Unit) is not a real currency. No banknotes denominated in ECU have been issued, as it is an accounting unit whose value is calculated on a daily basis. The exchange rate is calculated as an average of the currencies of the Member States of the European Economic Community (EEC).