European Defense Community

European Defense Community

      an abortive attempt by western European powers, with United States support, to counterbalance the overwhelming conventional military ascendancy of the Soviet Union in Europe by the formation of a supranational European army and, in the process, to subsume West German forces into a European force, avoiding the tendentious problem of West German rearmament. The idea was originally mooted at the Hague Conference of 1948. Influenced by the Korean War, the French politician René Pleven (Pleven, René) evolved a plan that later was put forward by the French foreign minister Robert Schuman at a meeting of the Council of Europe in 1951. Though the weaker members of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) were keen, the Scandinavians were cool toward the idea, and opinion in France and Italy was divided. A treaty was actually concluded in Paris in 1952, but tension between eastern and western Europe lessened, and by 1954 the necessity for the EDC seemed also to diminish. In its place there arose the Western European Unity Treaty (May 6, 1955), setting up the Western European Union.

* * *


Universalium. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Нужно решить контрольную?

Look at other dictionaries:

  • European Defense Community — The European Defense Community (EDC) was a plan proposed in 1950 by René Pleven, the French President of the Council (name of Prime Ministers till 1958), in response to the American call for the rearmament of West Germany. The intention was to… …   Wikipedia

  • European Defense Community (EDC) — Attempt by western European powers, with U.S. support, to counterbalance the overwhelming conventional military ascendancy of the Soviet Union in Europe by creating a supranational European army, including West German forces. A treaty was… …   Universalium

  • European Defence Community — The European Defense Community (EDC) was a plan proposed in 1950 by René Pleven, the French President of the Council (name of Prime Ministers till 1958), in response to the American call for the rearmament of West Germany. The intention was to… …   Wikipedia

  • community — communital, adj. /keuh myooh ni tee/, n., pl. communities. 1. a social group of any size whose members reside in a specific locality, share government, and often have a common cultural and historical heritage. 2. a locality inhabited by such a… …   Universalium

  • European — Europeanly, adv. /yoor euh pee euhn, yerr /, adj. 1. of or pertaining to Europe or its inhabitants. 2. native to or derived from Europe: traditional European customs; European languages. n. 3. a native or inhabitant of Europe. 4. a person of… …   Universalium

  • defense — defenseless, adj. defenselessly, adv. defenselessness, n. /di fens / or, esp. for 7, 9, /dee fens/, n., v., defensed, defensing. n. 1. resistance against attack; protection: Two more regiments are needed for the defense of the city. 2. something… …   Universalium

  • European Union — 1. an association of European nations formed in 1993 for the purpose of achieving political and economic integration. Formerly known as the European Economic Community, the European Union s member states are Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland,… …   Universalium

  • European Union — <p></p> <p></p> Introduction ::European Union <p></p> Preliminary statement: <p></p> The evolution of what is today the European Union (EU) from a regional economic agreement among six neighboring… …   The World Factbook

  • European School — The European Schools are co educational public schools providing nursery, primary and secondary education. They are established to provide free education for children of personnel of the European Institutions. Other children may be admitted… …   Wikipedia

  • EUROPEAN COMMUNITY, THE — The Beginning of the European Economic Community After World War II, Europe was suffering from the wide destruction caused by the war and the deep separation between two different camps: one which had struggled for freedom and the other which had …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”