Recognition of Euro's Inferiority in Germany Grows – NGO Director

More Germans now acknowledge the shortcomings of using the euro and the benefits of their former national currency, the Deutsche Mark, Robert Oulds, the Director of the Bruges Group think tank told Sputnik.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — A new poll conducted by ICM Research exclusively for Sputnik revealed on Tuesday that 39 percent of German citizens would prefer to go back to using the Deutsche Mark.

"There's growing recognition in Germany that the Deutsche Mark was actually a successful currency. There's growing recognition that they can't afford to pay for the problems of Southern Europe," Robert Oulds, director of the Bruges Group, said.

According to Oulds, it is not just Germany that should consider abandoning the euro.

"In the long run, it would be better for European countries to return to growth, to go back to their national currencies," Oulds concluded.

The Deutsche Mark was replaced by the euro in 1999, but Deutsche Mark banknotes and coins remained in circulation until 2002.

The European Union is currently undergoing a period of slow growth following a 2010 European sovereign debt crisis. In March 2015, amid with the possibility of Greece exiting the eurozone and the launch of the European Central Bank's quantitative-easing program, the euro sank to an 11-year low against the US dollar.