European Integration

European integration is the process of political, legal and economic integration of states wholly or partially in Europe. In the present day, European integration has primarily come about through the European Union and the Council of Europe. The Union itself is widely recognized and appreciated. However; before the end of World War II, people were unaccustomed to this momentous concept. At the end of the Second World War, Europe was in pandemonium. Thousands of refugees roamed the streets, the economy had collapsed, and most of the European industrial infrastructure was destroyed. When it did end in1945, it ultimately brought an end to traditional European hegemony in the world. The two new superpowers, the USA and the USSR, had superior economic, political and military might, much more so than the heterogeneous group of European States. There was a great desire among many Europeans to create a freer, fairer and more prosperous continent, in which the international relationships could develop so as to match the two superpowers.   Also, as both world wars had begun as civil wars within European countries and the continent had been the main battle field in both, it became evident that something needed to change to avoid such hostility. Integration would aid the prevention of confrontation among European States. Essentially, it was a question of searching for accommodation between France and Germany. Therefore, European integration paved the way to guarantee peace.
In order to achieve European integration, a recovery project was first needed to revitalise the European, and also the global economy.   A rational effort was made by the United States in 1947 when General George Marshall announced a Plan; not in Congress, but to students at Harvard University.   This European Recovery Programme (nicknamed the ‘Marshall Plan’) aimed at reducing the hunger, homelessness, sickness, unemployment, and political restlessness in Western Europe. Marshall Plan funds were not mainly...