I am sure you might be schoked if I say that without Stalin the European Union might have never existed. Of course it is a "boutade" (look at the meaning in a dictionary) for attracting your attention. But however it is not entirely false as in a great measure the alliance of the European States was a way of protecting each other against a most likely invasion by the Red Army. If finally the USSR only controlled Eastern Europe, it was because some Western European States decided to cooperate closely creating a Community of States, only three years after the beginning of the Cold War. Let's remember how did it happen.
1. Europe at the beginning of the Cold War (1948)
The failure of the Congress of The Hague (7-11 May 1948) seemed to end any hope about creating an integrated Europe. But the situation was unsustainable for European States because Stalin, as a reaction against the Marshall Plan broke with the Western allies of the USSR and rose the “Iron Curtain”, an expression of Churchill meaning that all Eastern Europe was under the occupation of the Red Army.
The
only exception was West Berlin occupied by American, British
and French troops, though it was surrounded by territory under Soviet control.
No wonder then that the Cold War started when Stalin ordered its troops to
isolate West Berlin (Berlin Blockade) West Berliners did no surrender
because from June 1948 to May 1949 the Western Allies supplied the besieged
city by air (Berlin Airlift). American and British pilots conducted
during this period more than 250.000 flights dropping food, medicines, fuel and
anything West Berlin population needed. They started delivering 3,475 tons of
supplies daily, but by the end of the blockade, the spring of 1949, the figure
had risen to 12,941 tons.
As you can imagine, after breaking with Stalin,
the Governments of the European Western States were afraid that the
powerful Red Army that already occupied Eastern Europe could move further West. So
they needed to do something to prevent a Russian invasion. In fact as you
already know Westerner States did two things.
a) At the continental level they created a Western
German State to ensure a defensive frontier against the Red wave. The German
Federal Republic created the 23 May 1949, (just at the end of the
Berlin Blockade). Of course, Stalin decided to retaliate and responded 5 months
later imposing the creation of the German Democratic Republic (7
October 1949).
The Berlin Wall would not be torn down until 9
November 1989. Almost three decades of isolation for the West Berliners, though
it was necessary to wait until the "Treaty on the Final Settlement with
Respect to Germany (Vertrag über die abschließende Regelung in Bezug
auf Deutschland) also known as
the Two Plus Four Agreement (Zwei-plus-Vier-Vertrag) because it dealt with
the reunification of the TWO Germanies, and was accepted by the FOUR powers
that had occupied German territory in May 1945. Signed on 12 September 1990, it
was effective since the 15 March 1991. Germany had lacked of
sovereignty for 46 years.
b) At the World level they requested the aid of the US
through a defensive alliance.
At the demand of Europeans Governments who considered
they could not defend themselves alone in case of an attack from the Red Army,
US and Canada agreed to constitute NATO in 4 April 1949; a month
before the creation of the West German State.
In fact the creation of this Alliance had also further
purposes: to prevent war among the European States favouring European
integration. Fortunately, by then the United States had turned its back on its
traditional policy of diplomatic isolationism.
It is often said that the North Atlantic Treaty
Organization was founded in response to the threat posed by the Soviet Union.
This is only partially true. In fact, the Alliance’s creation was part of a
broader effort to serve three purposes: 1) deterring Soviet
expansionism, 2) forbidding the revival of nationalist militarism in Europe
through a strong North American presence on the continent, and 3) encouraging
European political integration.
The aftermath of World War II saw much of Europe
devastated in a way that is now difficult to envision. Approximately
36.5 million Europeans had died in the conflict, 19 million of them civilians.
Refugee camps and rationing dominated daily life. In some areas, infant
mortality rates were one in four. Millions of orphans wandered the burnt-out
shells of former metropolises. In the German city of Hamburg alone, half a
million people were homeless.
In addition, Communists aided by the Soviet Union were threatening elected governments across Europe. In February 1948, the Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, with covert backing from the Soviet Union, overthrew the democratically elected government in that country. Then, in reaction to the democratic consolidation of West Germany, the Soviets blockaded Allied-controlled West Berlin in a bid to consolidate their hold on the German capital. The heroism of the Berlin Airlift provided future Allies with some solace, but privation remained a grave threat to freedom and stability.
... after much discussion and debate, the North Atlantic Treaty was signed on 4 April, 1949. In the Treaty’s renowned Article 5, the new Allies agreed “an armed attack against one or more of them… shall be considered an attack against them all” and that following such an attack, each Ally would take “such action as it deems necessary, including the use of armed force” in response.t
While the signing of the North Atlantic Treaty had
created Allies, it had not created a military structure that could effectively
coordinate their actions. This changed when growing worries about Soviet
intentions culminated in the Soviet detonation of an atomic bomb in
1949 and in the outbreak of the Korean War in 1950. The effect upon
the Alliance was dramatic. NATO soon gained a consolidated command
structure with a military Headquarters … (Text extracted from the NATO
web page) Reference: https://www.nato.int/cps/en/natohq/declassified_139339.htm
[Last retrieved April 2022]
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2. European integration as a priority
But the founding of NATO and the creation of West
Germany were short-term measures, and there was a growing feeling
in European Western States that they should join their efforts to
survive at the World Level between the two super powers: the US and
the USSR. The problem was how to do it as European governments were not
willing to give up the smallest bit of sovereignty of their respective
countries, as demonstrated the failure of the Hague Congress.
Fortunately European politicians did not pay any
attention to a singular personality: Jean Monnet (1888-1979)
who was essentially a pragmatic business man that had an essential role in
World politics since World War 1, not only in Europe but the US, as part of the
Think Tank of President F. D. Roosevelt. He was, for instance, determinant for
the launching of the Marshall Plan under the Truman Administration.
Monnet was fully aware that nationalism of the
European States made impossible to consider a united supranational
Europe. But protected by NATO alliance and considering the success of
the Marshall Plan, that for economic reasons worked at the supranational level,
as it was a collective deal were European States accepted to submit for
the purposes or reconstruction to a joint action, he thought that
if remaining in the economic field an integration could be tried.
He was lucky to be a good friend of an important
French politician, Robert Schuman, and that West Germany had
as head of Government a lucid politician, Konrad Adenauer, that was
more than willing to have Germany accepted as an equal by the other European
Western States, in order to avoid the disaster of the 1919
"Versailles Diktat".
3. The Schuman Declaration of 9 May 1950
Monnet and Schuman agreed to launch a very
modest first step towards European integration, as it was apparently limited to
the joint production of Coal and Steel. But if you read carefully the
brief Schuman Declaration of 9 May 1950, you will easily
discover that the initiative had far more reaching consequences for the six
initial member states.
4. The first European Community: the E.C.S.C.
The Treaty of Paris (18 April 1951) founding the European
Coal and Steel Community (1952-2002) was not a constitution.
It was a contract, an agreement creating a six member
States European Community. Each of the signing states had their own
constitution, legal system and full independence and sovereignty, with a tiny
exception: they gave up control over the production of coal, iron and
steel that depended on a High Authority that imposed its decisions
over the member states.
5. The failure of the European Defense Community
As the Communitarian method had worked, the founding
members of the ECSC decided to go for another try. But what was the most urgent
question that ECSC member States faced? In the beginning of the cold war, with
the mighty Stalin Army on its borders, and despite of the creation of NATO
it made a lot of sense to create a European Defense Community (EDC). Proposed
by the then French Prime Minister René Pleven the Treaty establishing the new
community was signed on the 27 May 1952. However the Treaty was never effective
as the French National Assembly refused to ratify it on 30
August 1954 by a vote of 319 against 264.
Military integration was by far a too sensitive
matter, especially for the French in 1954, as France had suffered a severe defeat
in the Dien Bien Phu battle (13 March to 7 May 1954) that
ended the Indochina War and the French presence in this territory, actually
Vietnam.
Even today, in a world of a growing
tendency to a full scale war, with the Ukraine War started in February
2022, or the War in Gaza started in October 2024, with China menace of invasion
of Taiwan, Europeans cannot agree in creating a Common Army. The 27
Member States of the EU are most unwilling to renounce to this
essential part of their sovereignty: their national armies. So NATO and
the US Army are the only way that Europe could prevent an open
war with Russia or China.
6. Staying away from politics: getting back to the old
idea of a European Customs Union
Jean Monet understood that the only possible way of
getting together was through economy, and this why at the Messina Conference
(June 1955) he came along with the old idea of a Customs Union. Something
that, as we already know had a precedent in the Prussian Zollverein (1834).
The negotiations result was the signature of the Treaty of Rome in March 1957, that enabled to create two new European Communities, besides the ESCC: the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC).
The EEC was going to be the decisive step for
initiating an effective integration. It was such a success that only 3 years
later of its creation, the UK, that had refused initially to join the new
European Customs Union, decided to retaliate with the creation of their own
Customs Union. The European Free Trade Agreement (EFTA)
including besides the United Kingdom: Finland, Sweden, Denmark, Norway,
Austria, Portugal and Switzerland.
7. European integration slows down because of De
Gaulle (1958-1969)
EFTA however did not go as well as expected as
proven by the fact that one year later (July 1961) the British Government asked
to join the EEC. They would have to wait however 13 years because they had
the fierce opposition of the French President Charles De Gaulle (1958-1969)
who felt France had been humiliated by Churchill in 1945.
The paradox is that De Gaulle did not like very
much the idea of European integration, as he was a big supporter of the French
"Grandeur" and he was not willing to give up any substantial
parcel of French sovereignty. European integration was on its way but
it had to slow down because De Gaulle French nationalism. During the
10 years he was in power he permanently vetoed the entry of the UK in
the EEC. Let's say that after Brexit we have to conclude that De Gaulle
was absolutely right about the fact that the British had nothing to do
in an integrated Europe.
As De Gaulle did no accept that France would be
obliged by a Majority Vote he started what was called the Empty Chair
policy, meaning simply that France did not attend the European Summits, in
a way to block any possibility of reaching agreements to take common decisions.
The crisis was resolved through the Luxembourg Compromise that established the
principle of unanimity vote of the Member States as the usual
way of adopting decisions.
The other important point that De Gaulle imposed in Communitarian Europe was that the main decisions were personally adopted by the heads of State or Government. This is the origin of the actual European Council, that directly represent the member states in front of the Communitarian Executive (the Commission).
In fact France
under De Gaulle had its own external policy namely concercing the cold war. In
1964 France recognizes the Popular Republic of China, and in 1966 De Gaulle
visit’s the USSR and signs some important Cooperation Agreements. On the other
hand De Gaulle while visiting the French speaking Canadian Province of Quebec
pronounces on the 24 of July 1967 his famous speech in Montreal’s Town Hall
that ends with the Cry “Long live Free Quebec” (Vive le Québec libre).
8. An enlarged Communitarian Europe
De Gaulle’s gone finally the European integration had
a restart and new Member States were admitted in successive
enlargements. The UK, with Ireland and Danemark joined
Communitarian Europe in 1973. Since then many members state
have joined the EEC including Greece (1981), Spain and Portugal
(1986). After the creation in 1992 of the European Union, as a
result of the fall of the Berlin Walll and the disappearance of the USSR, many
more countries would integrate until reaching the actual number of 27.
At one point there were 28 Member States, but the UK left on the 31 January
2020, implementing the vote at the Brexit Referendum in
2016.
9. Towards a closer European Union
Before the decisive decade of the 1990's that saw the creation of the European Union there were substantial advances in the European integration as was the democratic election of a European Parliament since 1979. In 1985 the Schengen Treaty opened the way to the suppression of common frontiers and in 1986 the Common Market was relaunched through another Treaty: the Single European Act. Three Years later, the Fall of the Berlin Wall opened wide perspectives for a stronger integration. We will see its consequences in Teaching Guide number 12.
INSTRUCTIONS: First read the text included in your
Materials (pages 260 to 267 FOR Teaching Guide 10 and 273 to 285 for Teaching
Guide 11), before proceeding to answer the Concrete Questions, the Concepts and
the General Questions.
Concerning the Basic Chronology (pages 268-269 for TG
10 and 286-288 for TG 11) you should get familiar with the following dates:
1949,
23 May: Creation of the German Federal Republic.
7 October: Creation of the German Democratic
Republic.
1950, 9 May: Schuman Declaration
1951: ECSC (Treaty of Paris). Europe of 6.
1952-1954: Failure of the EDC
1955, June: Messina Conference.
1957, 25 March : Treaties of Rome (EEC and EAEC)
1960 : EFTA
1965: Executive Merger Treaty.
1966: Luxembourg Compromise
1973, January 1st: First Enlargement of Communitarian
Europe (UK, Ireland and Denmark). Europe of 9.
1975: Creation of the ERDF (Europe of Regions)
1979: First elections to the European Parliament.
1981. Second Enlargement: Greece joins Communitarian
Europe. Europe of 10.
1985:
14 June: Schengen Agreement
28-29 June: The European Council adopts the European Flag
1986, January 1st: Third Enlargement: Spain and
Portugal join an Europe of 12.
1987, 1st July : Single European Act enters into force
amending the EEC.
TOPIC FOR DISCUSSION IN CLASS: Should Communitarian Europe remain essentially economic?
Please consider the following aspects:
1. Review what was the Monnet and Schuman approach in
the Schuman Declaration. What was the spirit of it?
2. Take into consideration the failure of the European
Defense Community, proposed initially by France and rejected by the same
country.
3. Consider the De Gaulle’s reaction that led to the
Luxembourg Compromise
4. Which was the political aim of the European
Regional Development Fund?
5. Why was necessary the Single European Act?
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