The Death of Euro Architect Jacques Delors

Former President of the European Commission Jacques Delors, one of the founding fathers of the historic project of the single currency (the euro), has passed away at the age of 98. Delors was a staunch advocate for European integration in the post-war era and served as President of the European Commission, the executive body of the European Union, for three terms from January 1985 until the end of 1994, the longest of any Commission President. During the dynamic decade he spent as President, the European Union completed the integrated single market, agreed on a single currency, and built a common foreign and security policy. His daughter, Martine Aubry, the socialist mayor of Lille, told AFP that her father died in his sleep at his home in the French capital. French President Emmanuel Macron praised him, saying he was "a tireless engineer working for Europe" and a fighter for human justice. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen stated, "Jacques Delors was a visionary who made Europe stronger." The announcement of Delors' death came just hours after the news of the passing of Wolfgang Schäuble, who served as a member of the German parliament (Bundestag) for more than half a century, at the age of 81.