Member regions represent different political structures: Wallonia, comprising the French and German-speaking Communities of Belgium; the former Lorraine part of Grand Est, a region of France, including the French departments Meurthe-et-Moselle, Meuse, Moselle and Vosges; the German federated states of Rhineland-Palatinate and Saarland; and the sovereign state of Luxembourg.

After the death of Louis the Pious in 840, the Carolingians adhered to the Germanic custom of partible inheritance, and the Treaty of Verdun in 843 divided the empire into three.

[1] The struggle to gain control over Lotharingia was the cause of centuries of struggle and war[1] between the two other Franconian kingdoms (West and East Francia), which over time evolved into the Kingdom of France and the Holy Roman Empire (the predecessor of subsequent German states), with the Holy Roman Empire ultimately gaining control until the 18th century.

Luxembourg was placed in a personal union under the Dutch crown but also made subject to the Holy Roman Empire's successor: the German Confederation.

In 1830, as a result of the Belgian Revolution, the Kingdom of Belgium declared independence from the Netherlands and also de facto annexed the French-speaking portion of Luxembourg (around 2⁄3 of its area at that time).

As a result of these events, the inhabitants of the region were on different sides in the Franco Prussian War of 1870–71, which ultimately led to the founding of the German Empire.

Following World War I, this territory was ceded back to France in the Treaty of Versailles, while the Saargebiet, an area roughly co-extensive with the modern Saarland, was placed under joint British and French control until 1935.

After World War II, the Saar Protectorate was established under French control until 1957, when it was reunited with (West) Germany, forming the modern state.

The main axis of the state is the Rhine river that forms the border with Baden-Württemberg and Hesse in the southeast before running across the northern part of Rhineland-Palatinate.

The Rhine Valley is bounded by mountain chains and forms a landscape containing some of the most historically significant places in Germany.

Economically prosperous zones exist along the eastern borders, while in the western part of the state, there are structurally backward, rural regions.

Two of these départements, Vosges in the south and Meuse in the west, only have small interests in the SaarLorLux region, because they are far away from the shared border.

[13] Wallonia with its five provinces and two communities has far reaching competencies in relation to economics, infrastructure, regional planning and foreign trade.

German (with facilities for speakers of French) is the official language in nine eastern municipalities which belonged to Germany until 1918 and now form the German-speaking Community of Belgium.

In a survey conducted by the Universite Catholique de Louvain in Louvain-La-Neuve and published in June 2006, only 19% of Walloons stated that they were able to speak Dutch.

This agreement is the legal base of a boundary-crossing cooperation of administrations and institutions to promote the economic, cultural, touristic and social development of the region.

The participants are: This summit conference is the central political organ of the interregional cooperation of the enlarged SaarLorLux region.

[24] This council promotes the economic, social and cultural role of the Saar-Lor-Lux Greater Region and tries to develop a perspective for crossborder cooperation.

Five standing committees report to the council: In October 1984 seven establishments in Saar-Lor-Lux signed a university cooperation agreement (the Charter) at Pont-à-Mousson.

In November 1999 the House of the Greater Region (Haus der Großregion – Maison de la Grande Région) was opened in Luxembourg.

[40] For a citizen of the town of Tournai, in the west of Wallonia, the nearest neighbouring region of SaarLorLux is about two hundred kilometres away.

This co-ordinates with the plan to create cross border schools, giving students the opportunity to gain access to jobs within the European Community and international enterprises.

There are intentions for interlinked higher education, research, and innovation, with statements of marks, examinations and diplomas bearing the seal of SaarLorLux.

The politicians also hope to form a single employment market within the common economic area[44] resulting in a multinational workforce and a transfer of knowledge.

In 2020 the region shall be an area with a homogeneous population possessing solid infrastructure and many interregional networks and urban agglomerations.

The eight summit delegates agreed that the areas of multilingualism and culture, science and research, tourist marketing, the economy and employment, and transport should be studied.

People are relocating to villages on the other side of the border, where houses are cheaper or taxes lower, although there still is not much willingness to become part of the other society.

Common economic problems arising from drastic changes in the industrial and coal mining areas of the four countries have led to the creation of a community of interest and to the development of common projects like the European Development Pole in the cross-border area of Longwy in France, Rodange in Luxembourg and Athus in Belgium.

This association is a project cofinanced by the European Regional Development Funds, within the framework of the INTERREG IV A program Grande Région.

The main activities of the association are to bring cultural authorities of the Greater Region together and to define a common work program.