2) Political Competition in the Franco-German Relationship
As previously mentioned, Europeans were conscious of the importance of the eliminations of the roots of wars. The French Government discerned that the integration with Germany was a critical issue in terms of war prevention. In 1950, Robert Schuman, the French foreign minister, suggested the cooperation between France and Germany. The Plan was related to coal and steel industries of the Federal Republic. Since the steel production of West Germany kept increasing constantly (Hörber 2006, 118), the coal and steel industries of Germany had to be under the interdependence of European industrial structure.
Consequently, the European integration was started. Robert Schuman, considered as one of the founders the European Union, proposed …show more content…
The Union has experienced several membership expansions. When the EEC and EURATOM were established by the Treaty of Rome in 1958, Gaullist France remained implacably opposed to British membership in or association with the EEC because the French government would like to take a leading role among the EEC. Accordingly, de Gaulle and Adenauer, the Chancellor of West Germany, had several meeting in order to build cooperation relations with each other (Moravcsik 2002).
However, this relationship changed in late 1960s and early 70s. There were several oppositions to each other. The Federal Republic of Germany pushed ahead with the Ostpolitik by the Chancellor Willy Brandt to open the Eastern Communist bloc as a foreign policy in 1970s. In response to Germany’s movements toward East, the President Georges Pompidou agreed to the UK and Ireland to join the years of opposition to entry into the EEC in order to maintain the balance of power (Simonian 1985, 80). This aggravated the Franco-Germany relations as well as the relations between Pompidou and
As previously mentioned, Europeans were conscious of the importance of the eliminations of the roots of wars. The French Government discerned that the integration with Germany was a critical issue in terms of war prevention. In 1950, Robert Schuman, the French foreign minister, suggested the cooperation between France and Germany. The Plan was related to coal and steel industries of the Federal Republic. Since the steel production of West Germany kept increasing constantly (Hörber 2006, 118), the coal and steel industries of Germany had to be under the interdependence of European industrial structure.
Consequently, the European integration was started. Robert Schuman, considered as one of the founders the European Union, proposed …show more content…
The Union has experienced several membership expansions. When the EEC and EURATOM were established by the Treaty of Rome in 1958, Gaullist France remained implacably opposed to British membership in or association with the EEC because the French government would like to take a leading role among the EEC. Accordingly, de Gaulle and Adenauer, the Chancellor of West Germany, had several meeting in order to build cooperation relations with each other (Moravcsik 2002).
However, this relationship changed in late 1960s and early 70s. There were several oppositions to each other. The Federal Republic of Germany pushed ahead with the Ostpolitik by the Chancellor Willy Brandt to open the Eastern Communist bloc as a foreign policy in 1970s. In response to Germany’s movements toward East, the President Georges Pompidou agreed to the UK and Ireland to join the years of opposition to entry into the EEC in order to maintain the balance of power (Simonian 1985, 80). This aggravated the Franco-Germany relations as well as the relations between Pompidou and