European Union

Securing peace by setting up international organisations

Our analysis of the process of European integration begins by taking a look at the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) and by asking: How did it come about?

The greatest reason of all was the terrible events of the Second World War. These events led to the establishment of a number of international organisations during the post-war period set against a real will to make sure that these events were not repeated and a real desire to achieve peace among nations. These international organisations included the foundation of the United Nations in 1945, the setting up of the International Monetary Fund also in 1945 and GATT, which came into force on the 1st of January 1948. And, last but not least, was the setting up of the Council of Europe, whose statute was signed in 1949 by the founding members.
 

Looking for ways of achieving closer cooperation

As far as the French were concerned, this looked like a firm opportunity to implement a strategy in the coal, iron and steel industry which would also be very good for its national interests. France believed that cooperation in this area would enable it to keep an eye on German heavy industry, while at the same time promoting the reconciliation process between Germany and France. And it was for this reason that, in May 1950, the French foreign minister, Robert Schuman, put forward a plan for the creation of an authority to control the production of coal and steel in West Germany and France. This plan was called the Schuman Plan.
 

April 1951: Signing of the Treaty on the foundation of the ECSC

Only one month later, an intergovernmental conference was called to discuss this proposal and in April 1951 a treaty was signed in Paris by France, the Federal Republic of Germany, Italy, Belgium, Luxemburg and Holland in France (see photo left) to create the (ECSC).


 

ECSC as a supranational organisation

To this end, then, a completely new form of organisation in two ways was created: It was not a free trade area that was being established, but a common market in what at the time was an extremely important area. Member states were surrendering a substantial proportion of national sovereignty to newly created supranational institutions.
 

The institutional structure of the ECSC

The Council of Ministers consisted of one representative from each country and was established to serve coordination between the High Authority and state governments. Another of its tasks was to monitor the activities of the High Authority, but certainly not in all cases. One example of this was the need to gain Council of Minister approval before a manifest crisis could be declared. A state of manifest crisis was required to operate production quotas. The Council reaches its decisions using one of three voting procedures: unanimity, qualified majority or simple majority. Which one is actually used depends on the issue being discussed.

The Common Assembly consists of representatives sent by national parliaments and carries out a purely consultative function. The fourth and last institution to be created by the ECSC Treaty was the Court of Justice, which was tasked with using the Treaty to rule on conflicts between member states, between the bodies of the ECSC and between member states and bodies.
 

Stage 1 summary: ECSC as a new kind of organisation

So, at the end of this first stage of our tour through the development of the EU, we have established that the ECSC really did represent the creation of something entirely new, something fundamentally different from all the other organisations that were founded during this period. A structure had been created in which, yes, national states cooperated, but which also demonstrated characteristics which, until this point, had only been recognizable in national political systems.