History of European integration (1948–1957)
With the start of the Cold War, the Treaty of Brussels was signed in 1948 establishing the Western Union (WU) as the first organisation.
It expanded upon the Dunkirk Treaty which was a military pact between France and the United Kingdom who were concerned about the threat from the USSR following the communist takeover in Czechoslovakia.
The new treaty included the Benelux countries and was to promote cooperation not only in military matters but the in economic, social and cultural spheres.
[1] Furthermore, in April 1948, the Organization for European Economic Co-operation, the predecessor of the OECD, was also founded to manage the Marshall Plan, triggering as a response the formation of the Comecon for the Soviet-controlled part of Europe.
It expanded the Brussels treaty members to include Denmark, Iceland, Italy, Norway, Portugal as well as Canada and most notably the United States.
However it exposed a division between unionist (opposed to a loss of sovereignty) and federalist (desiring a federal Europe) supporters.
Based in Strasbourg, it is an organisation dealing with democracy and human rights issues (today covering nearly every European state).
A "Scandinavian joint committee for economic cooperation" was established which led to a customs union under the Nordic Council which held its first meeting in 1953.
[8]: 346 Initially, France proposed that an international regime control the production and export of coal and steel in the Ruhr.
To address French concerns, the International Authority for the Ruhr (IAR) was announced at the London Six-Power Conference in June 1948 as part of the plan to establish the Federal Republic of Germany.
[13] In May 1950, the French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman proposed a new strategy: pooling the markets for coal and steel of France, Germany, and other European countries wanting to participate.
[15] He proposed that: "Franco-German production of coal and steel as a whole be placed under a common High Authority, within the framework of an organisation open to the participation of the other countries of Europe."
Such an act was intended to help economic growth and cement peace between France and Germany, who had previously been longtime enemies.
[16][17][18] By the signature of this Treaty, the participating Parties give proof of their determination to create the first supranational institution and that thus they are laying the true foundation of an organised Europe.
The declaration led to the Treaty of Paris (1951) forming the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC).
[22] The Treaty was ratified by the middle of 1952, and the European Coal and Steel Community agreement entered into force on 23 July 1952.
West Germany eventually joined in 1955 both WEU and NATO, prompting the Soviet Union to form the Warsaw Pact in 1955 as an institutional framework for its military dominatin in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe.
[25] The Assembly was not originally mentioned in the Schuman Declaration but put forward by Jean Monnet on the second day of treaty negotiations.
This grouping provided a chamber of professional associations for civil society and was in permanent dialogue with the High Authority on policy and proposals for legislation.
The threefold division of its members prevented any one group, whether business, labour or consumers, from dominating proceedings, as majority voting was required.
The Consultative Committee had an important action in controlling the budget and expenditures, drawn from the first European tax on coal and steel producers.
This was in response to the withdrawal of funding for the Aswan Dam by the UK and United States due to Egypt's ties to the Soviet Union.
The nationalisation and closure to Israeli traffic prompted a military response by the UK, France and Israel, a move opposed by the United States.
The UK in particular saw it could not operate alone, instead turning to the US, and it also prompted the next British Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, to look towards joining the European Community.
[37] As a result of the crisis, the Common Assembly proposed extending the powers of the ECSC to cover other sources of energy.
The report concluded further nuclear development was needed to fill the deficit left by the exhaustion of coal deposits and to reduce dependence on oil producers.
The latter body fostered co-operation in the nuclear field, at the time a very popular area, and the EEC was to create a full customs union between members.
