Economic Integration

The European Union

For centuries, Europe was the scene of frequent and bloody wars. In the period 1870 to 1945, France and Germany fought each other three times, with terrible loss of life. A number of European leaders became convinced that the only way to secure a lasting peace between their countries was to unite them economically and politically.
After the Second World war Europe recognised the need for the rebuilding of nations in order to maintain long-term peace and prosperity.
After a number of false starts the birth of what is now the European Union took place at a press conference in 1950. The French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman proposed integrating the coal and steel industries of Western Europe. As a result, in 1951, the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was set up, with six members: Belgium, West Germany, Luxembourg, France, Italy and the Netherlands.
The ECSC was such a success that, within a few years, these same six countries decided to go further and in...