In this essay, I will be discussing why and how the European Union was set up and the advantages and disadvantages of membership in its historical context.
The European Union was built in the aftermath of the Second World War. This was to create peace and end frequent and bloody wars between neighbouring countries that culminated in the Second World War. “Autarky and protection, fragmenting Europe’s economy, had caused economic malaise and political antagonism.” This portrays how fragile the European Union was during the Second World War especially with the conflict between France and Germany. These two super giants had gone to war “three times in less than a century and twice had been at the centre of terrible world wars.” There was a
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Countries that were not effected as highly economically combined with the United States to contribute gold and currency to those among the EU to fund for basic government needs and help pay of their debts. This was an immensely positive gesture as it had come with no repayment plan.
The Marshall plan was introduced by an American general named George Marshall. Its aims were to spark economic recovery within the EU. Although this plan had channelled over $13 billion to help economic recovery between 1948-1951 the Soviet Union had refused to participate. This was due to the Soviet Union portraying this to interfere with internal affairs between states. This had led to the Soviets refusing Poland and Czechoslovakia to interfere. However, although the Soviets decided not to interfere the United States had taken the opportunity to remake the European economy in the image of their own.
During 1949, the Americans along with 11 other states had decided to form a pact which was then named NATO. The Soviets then decided upon themselves to form their own pact with other allies in eastern Europe and rival NATO thus it introduced the Warsaw Pact. Nearly every European country was divided into one of these two pacts and this had created political division. NATO had continued expansion of their pact beyond the cold war and it had grew bigger with more member states joining during the
At the end of World War 2, most countries in Europe were in a wreck. Cities were decimated and economy was failing, it was the time to rebuild. The European Union was an effective way to help Europe rebuild. The EU first started as just a common market for steel and coal, but quickly grew into a union of countries united as one. It is a great opportunity for countries in Europe as the it was created for the sole purpose of preserving peace and preventing another World War on the rebuilding continent. The EU is also very beneficial to countries as it has the best economy in the world, for the peace efforts and the ability to support its members.
The European Union (EU) is a unique economic and political partnership between 28 different countries. It consists of about half a billion citizens, and its combined economy represents about 20 percent of the world’s total economy (Briney, 2015). Today The European Union works as a single market, with free movement of people, goods and services from one country to another. There is a standard system of laws to be followed, and since 1999 many countries share a single currency called the Euro (Europa.eu, 2015). This essay will explore the background history of the European Union and the benefits and drawbacks of the European Union.
It also was in American interest to rebuild European economies to market American goods in Europe and to receive the money Britain and France borrowed during the war. Congress wasn’t in favor of the proposed plan at first but following a coup by communist in Czechoslovakia, they approved it.
The EU was created in the midst of a war in attempts to unite Europe under a common government. After 43 years of rebuilding foreign affairs, have their attempts made a positive impact on the modern Europe? Many argue that the EU takes a toll on country's sovereignty. They lack in allowing countries to be apart of the union, without masking the unique culture and diversity of that country. Despite the advantages of being apart of the EU, the disadvantages highly outweigh them in the areas of economic, independence and cultural identity.
The European Union was initially set up as a means to terminate the conflict that occurred within Europe throughout the 20th century, culminating with the end of The Second World War (WWII) and The Cold War that followed. The EU ultimately aimed to bring the member countries together in order to form an ‘ever closer union’ between the countries of Europe, thus preventing a future battle. The Union started as the European Economic Community (EEC), which was established in 1957, and over the years endured numerous adjustments to form the politico-economic union that we know of today.
In 1949 NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, formed an alliance with the countries in Western Europe and the United States in hopes to separate themselves from the countries of the east. The Eastern countries formed the Warsaw Pact; this was an inferior treaty considering the countries did not have the right to choose whether or not they
The Marshall plan was designed for the sole purpose of promoting economic recovery in Europe after the war and as well as trying to prevent soviet communism. This plan was first proposed by George Marshall and Harry Truman followed through with it after several controversial conversations. The Marshall plan took place in 1948-1952. The U.S. were trying to promote European recovery after the depression because majority of Americans were nearly famine. inclusion the Marshall plan was significant to the cold war because it had political influence
The Marshall Plan was an American initiative to aid Europe, in which the United States gave $13 billion in economic support to help rebuild European economies after the end of World War II. The plan was in operation for four years beginning in April 1948. The goals of the United States were to rebuild war-devastated regions, remove trade barriers, modernize industry, make Europe prosperous again, and prevent the spread of communism. The plan required a decreasing of interstate barriers, a dropping of many petty regulations constraining business, and encouraged an increase in productivity, labor union membership, as well as the adoption of modern business procedures.
Marshall Plan- The Marshall Plan was a plan on financial aid created by the United States. This plan was proposed by George Marshall, the United States Secretary of State. The Marshall Plan, also known as the Europe Recovery Program, was implemented from 1948 to 1951. The Plan was created to help restore Europe’s economy after WWI. The Marshall Plan was important because it helped restore Europe’s economy and stopped the spread of Soviet communism
The Marshall Plan of 1947 was presented by Secretary of State George Marshall and aimed at fueling Western European economies $12 Billion over four years to promote a climate in which free institutions could flourish. The economic rescue program was overwhelmingly successful, accelerating economic recovery and rebuilding damaged infrastructure. The Marshall plan highlighted the success and potential of free markets while strengthening ties between Western Europe and the United States. Another monumental Foreign Policy decision to deter Soviet aggression was the formation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in 1949. NATO is a military alliance between the United States and initially eleven western European nations with the key principle that an attack on one member is an attack on
In order to understand the significance of Brexit we must first look at the history of the European Union and
European Union despite of the recent issues involving Greece, on its debt-crisis and UK leaving the organization had still been undeniably successful in terms of economy and even politics. There are numerous factors which account the success story of the European Union. For the past few decades, Europe had already established a strong solidarity among its states and that would be the first thing which made the European Union successful. For example, most of the member-states of the EU had done collective reckoning after the fall of the Berlin wall. This collective reckoning has contributed to broaden the communication between states and even the citizens whereas they discuss international exchange of experiences. Since then, the fall of the Berlin wall has established the most significant events and consequences in the history of EU.
The European Union was created not only for improvement of state of the economy of the different countries, but also for improvement of quality of life of people and for uniform system of the power. Democratic system of the power which will affect all aspects of life of people. For correct work and fast development a number of bodies was created.
People have created unions many times but not all of them were successful, specifically when we consider alliances among number of countries with different economics, political systems and culture. For instance, last century brought both the biggest collapse and the most promising union in the modern history. Although U.S.S.R has disappeared from geographical maps, some of its members joined another alliance. The European Union (EU) is an economic and political partnership that united 28 countries on the European part of Eurasia and represents a unique form of cooperation among members today.
Topic: Analyse the main advantages and disadvantages of European Union enlargement for a) existing members and b) for applicant countries.