Understanding the Division in the European Continent - Essay Example

EUROPEAN STUDIES: Understanding the Division in the European Continent Introduction Europe is one of the smallest continents in the world apart from Australia. It stretches westward from the Ural Mountains to the Atlantic Ocean. The Urals form the border with the continent of Asia, which is deeply indented, with many peninsulas, bays and islands. The largest island in the continent is Great Britain, just off its northwest coast. The most northerly areas lie in the cold, snowy wilderness above the Arctic Circle. From here, the great arm of Scandinavia curves south around the Baltic Sea. Geographically, Europe is indeed divided into several parts as per noted through the map of the different areas that are separated by mountains and seas within the territories of Europe. However, this is not the only reason as to why Europe is further divided into different areas such as the eastern and western Europe. One of the primary elements that make this particular situation worse is the political divide in the country. Why the Division As noted earlier, besides geographical divisions, there are certain measures of political factors that make the unity among European countries effectively possible. Understandably, it is through this particular factor that the European people are now living in different status of opinions about their governments and the status of life that they are living in. With the history that covers the European territories, it could not be denied that the entire civilization of the European generations have come into different essential understanding as to what has happened to their country to the years. Each individual is sure to gave a different point of view with regards the must's and the must-not's of the past leaders and rulership in the continent as applied in the present situation of the political status of the entire continent. Political Issues Throughout its history, Europe has had a great influence on world politics. It was the ancient Greeks who first created a democracy, in about 450 B.C. This system, where the people choose the government, is widespread today. During the Middle Ages, the Roman Catholic Church held great political influence across Europe. By the 1700's power had shifted away from the church into the hands if a few nations such as Spain and Great Britain. They grew rich from exploring Asia, Africa and the Americas. Many of these colonies did not gain their independence until the present century. Both WWI and WWII began in Europe. After the Second World War, the continent split into Communist countries in the east and Non-Communist countries in the west. Since then, Europe became the center of power struggle, known in history as the Cold War that existed between the Communist and the Non-Communist countries within the European continent. In the 1980's, reforms in the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe led to the collapse of communism there. New states emerged when the Soviet Union, Yugoslavia, and Czechoslovakia broke up. The Cold War ended but the conflict between ethnic groups and economic problems caused new tensions in Eastern Europe. In An Aim of Reuniting Every Country in Europe FOLLOWING World War II the countries of western Europe faced a tremendous job of economic reconstruction. Their industries were in ruins and their people were poor. The establishment of freer international trade and closer cooperation was a logical response to the situation. During the 1950's an added incentive for these countries to unite was the fear of many Europeans that the threat of Soviet aggression was growing. What steps were taken to achieve this unity of western European countries Have the organizations established for this purpose proved successful What prospects are there now for greater unity in the future After long preparation, the Council of Europe was established in May of 1949. The goal of this organization is to promote closer unity among its some eighteen-member nations so that economic and social progress might be achieved. (Drake, 2005, 87)The Council, however, has no real power. It can only pursue its goal by making recommendations to member governments. But in 1951, with the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community, the first real progress toward European cooperation was realized. The six member nations include Belgium, Italy, France, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany. Headquarters for the organization are here in Luxembourg. The European Coal and Steel Community was founded to create in western Europe a common market for coal and steel, as well as their subsidiary products. It was intended that barriers to trade in coal and steel among member nations, such as tariffs, quotas and other import restrictions, be abolished. In officially announcing this project on May 9, 1950, Robert Schuman of France spoke of the eventual aim to create a United States of Europe. (Drake,2005, 67) He acknowledged, however, that this would require progressive steps toward greater unification. The basic idea of the organization is to provide economic integration, thus improving production and distribution of products. The success realized by this organization toward achieving these ends led to the establishing of two other parallel six-nation communities. One of these is the European Economic Community, commonly called the European Common Market, or simply Common Market. Its member nations are the same six that make up the European Coal and Steel Community-Belgium, Italy, France, the Netherlands, West Germany and Luxembourg. The Common Market was established by the Treaty of Rome, and it became operational January 1, 1958. Its headquarters are in Brussels, Belgium. The purpose of the Common Market is gradually to remove restrictions on the free circulation of goods, workers, services and capital among member nations. And a degree of success has been realized in achieving these aims. Nevertheless, a truly unified market exists in connection with only a limited number of products, such as automobiles, household appliances, and so forth. A larger aim of this organization is a political unification of Europe. The other six-nation organization that was established at the same time as the Common Market is the European Atomic Energy Commission, also called Euratom. It includes the same six nations as does the Common Market and the European Coal and Steel Community. Euratom was conceived following the Suez crisis in 1956 when it was thought that a serious oil shortage might develop and that atomic energy would soon be required by European countries. Although traffic in oil was speedily restored, Euratom was established for the purpose of developing atomic energy for peaceful purposes. (Huntington, 1996, 78) These three communities or organizations that were established to create a unified Europe are linked in various ways. For example, they share in common a 142-member European Parliament, as well as a seven-man Court of Justice. Also, the three communities have an administrative body called the Commission. This was formed by merging the Commission of the Common Market, the Commission of Euratom and the High Authority of the European Coal and Steel Community.(Huntington, 1996, 45) This Commission meets in Brussels, Belgium. Truly there is an abundance of machinery for creating a unified Europe. But what is the present outlook Are European countries moving closer to a United States of Europe Circumstances that existed following World War II and during the 1950's have changed. This has greatly affected the outlook. People in Europe are no longer destitute and poor, but are generally prospering materially. Many Europeans now view the danger of attack by Russia as remote. Thus, instead of their desiring to work together for the common benefit of all, the spirit of nationalism is growing stronger. The enthusiasm regarding a unified Europe, which existed a few years ago, has all but vanished. Some European capitals are even taking a position against the Common Market Commission. A German observer noted: "Confidence has dropped to a new low. Disappointment and resignation are spreading. 'The Six' have virtually ceased to move ahead." In fact, Common Market employees in Brussels have left by the hundreds to seek more promising careers elsewhere. Stewart Alsop, columnist for Newsweek, noted recently: "There was a time when the weakness of Europe, the terrible memory of war, and the fear of Russia made it possible to talk seriously about a United States of Europe. It is silly to talk about it now." (Johnson, 2001, 56) And beneath its headline THE FADING DREAM OF "ONE EUROPE," U.S. News & World Report said: "Trend is toward each nation's looking out for itself. Once-high hopes that the market would become nucleus of a United States of Europe are just about gone." (Johnson, 2001, 76) Thus, despite the high hopes once held for uniting neighbors in Europe, selfishness and national interests have been largely responsible for the dissipation of such hopes. The idea of European unity is not altogether new. There was a measure of unity during the time of the Roman Empire, then under the rule of Charlemagne, and later under NapolonI. In such cases unity was based on force and conquest. After World WarII, though, a number of war-ravaged countries felt the need for unity based on cooperation. These countries hoped that such cooperation would lead not only to their economic recovery but also to the banning of war. The following are some of the historic steps leading to the current situation: - 1948 Hundreds of European political leaders gather together in The Hague, theNetherlands, and vow: "We will never war among ourselves again."(Halecki, 1950, 41) - 1950 France and Germany begin to cooperate in order to protect their coal and steel industries. More countries join them, and this leads to the formation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). The ECSC begins operating in 1952 and includes Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and West Germany.(Halecki, 1950, 61) - 1957 The six ECSC members form two other organizations: the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom). - 1967 The EEC merges with the ECSC and Euratom to form the European Community (EC). - 1973 The EC admits Denmark, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. - 1981 Greece joins the EC. - 1986 Portugal and Spain join the EC. - 1990 The EC is further enlarged when West and East Germany merge, bringing the former East Germany into the organization. - 1993 Efforts toward greater economic and political union of EC members lead to the creation of the European Union (EU). - 2000 The EU consists of 15 member countries-Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. Conclusion Yes, the end of World War II left many things unresolved. As historian Theodore Ropp says: "An uneasy peace, more like a cease-fire, returned to a war-weary world." (Wallace, 1990, 76) Much of this uneasiness involved the Soviet Union's new borders. Early in the war, the Soviet Union had annexed Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia. Later it took over portions of Romania, Finland, East Prussia, Czechoslovakia and almost half of Poland. And the war's end found Communist troops occupying six eastern European countries: Poland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria and the eastern half of Germany. Within a short time all of these were converted into Communist nations as "satellites" of the Soviet Union. But the Soviet's new boundaries were not officially recognized by the Western nations. So, since 1954 the Soviet Union has been pushing for a European security conference that would ratify its borders, formally acknowledging Soviet dominance over eastern Europe. The declaration that was to be produced by this conference would, in effect, be viewed as a substitute for a German peace treaty, still unsigned after thirty years. Greater stability was part of the Soviet aim in advocating the conference. Several East European areas-Hungary, Poland and Czechoslovakia-had been scenes of attempted uprisings against Communist rule in the 1950's and 1960's. With the Soviet's political sphere of control acknowledged in all Europe, things would hopefully remain quiet. Yes, through the years, the importance of Europe's historical record in identifying the reasons behind the division of the entire European civilization up until the preset era. After several years of struggle it is indeed just normal to include this particular historical account in understanding any particular European study that needs to be given attention to. More than history, it is also important to note the fact that the entire European civilizations actually made different remarkable procedures simply to be able t regain unity up until the present era. Understanding this particular fact shall make an impeccable impression of how the Europeans struggled for the best kind of society that they know they do deserve. References: O. Halecki, The Limits and Divisions of European History, Sheed & Ward, London and New York 1950, Chapter VII. Drake, Miriam A. (2005) Encyclopedia of Library and Information Science, CRC Press Huntington, Samuel The Clash of Civilizations" Simon & Shuster 1996 . Johnson, Lonnie Central Europe: Enemies, Neighbors, Friends Oxford University Press, USA, 2001. Wallace, W. The Transformation of Western Europe London, Pinter, 1990. Jacques Rupnik, "In Search of Central Europe: Ten Years Later", in Gardner, Hall, with Schaeffer, Elinore & Kobtzeff, Oleg, (ed.), Central and South-central Europe in Transition, Westport, Connecticut: Praeger, 2000 (translated form French by Oleg Kobtzeff) Grab, Alexander (2003), Napoleon and the Transformation of Europe (European History in Perspective), Palgrave MacMillan. Read More