Poland. The EMU entry strategy vs. the monetary issues

The aim of this overview article is to examine and assess monetary issues crucial for the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) entry strategy. The optimum currency area (OCA) criteria are not used in assessing Polish suitability for the EMU, as they were not decisive in the process of the EMU creation. The degree of the Maastricht criteria fulfilment by the existing members on the examination date, i.e. on 1 January 1997 is analysed. Further, the official European Central Bank (ECB) and Commission position regarding the enlargement of the monetary union is presented. Next, we attempt to present the rationale behind the early EMU strategy in the case of Poland. We also use data on Slovenia to demonstrate and compare different roads and attitudes to the EMU. The state of convergence of monetary and economic variables are presented and assessed. To address the issue of convergence, the ability to sustainably meet the Maastricht criteria are also considered.