Abstract
Political developments in Central and Eastern Europe and the process of German unification present the EC with a major challenge. How has the EC reacted to these changes so far? What contribution can the eC make to overcoming the division of Europe?
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References
George Schöpflin: Das Ende des Kommunismus, in: Europa-Archiv, No. 2, 1990, pp. 51–60; Hans-Peter Schwarz: Auf dem Weg zum post-kommunistischen Europa, in: Europa-Archiv No. 11, 1989, pp. 319–330
According to Ferenc Bartha, president of the Hungarian National Bank, in an article in Handelsblatt of 3rd/4th April 1990: “Joining the EC will sooner or later be on the agenda for every Eastern European country.”
Special working groups have been formed in the EC Commission, led by the Commissioner responsible in each case, to examine such questions. The European Parliament organised a temporary committee for the examination of the effects of the process of unification of Germany on the EC.
On this, cf. Rudolf Hrbek: EC Reform Inch by Inch, in: INTERECONOMICS, No. 3, 1986, pp. 130–136;Werner Weidenfeld: Die Einheitliche Europäische Akte, in: Aussenpolitik, No. 4, 1986, pp. 375–383; as well as many articles in the special edition of Integration (No. 3, 1986) dedicated to the SEA.
On this, cf. remarks by Hans-Joachim Glaesner: Das Verfahren der Zusammenarbeit (Art. 149, Abs. 2 EWGV), in: Europa-Recht, No. 2, 1988, pp 122–128; see also Werner Ungerer: Die neuen Verfahren nach der Einheitlichen Europäischen Akte: Eine Bilanz aus der Ratsperspektive, in: Integration, No. 3, 1989, pp. 95–106.
On this, cf. Rudolf Hrbek: The Arduous Beginnings of EC Reform, in: INTERECONOMICS, No. 6, 1987, pp. 273–281.
Cf. Claus-Dieter Ehlermann: Die Beschlüsse des Brüsseler Sondergipfels: Erfolg einer Gesamtstrategie der Delors-Kommission, in: Integration, No. 2, 1988, pp. 56–63.
As an example of this, cf. the research report on “Anpassungsstrategien von Unternehmen und öffentlichen Verwaltungen an ‘1992’”, in: Integration No. 2, 1989, pp. 83–87.
On this, cf. Norbert Kloten: Der „Delors-Bericht”, in: Europa-Archiv, No. 9, 1989, pp. 251–260; see also Wolfgang Harbrecht: Wege zur Errichtung einer Europäischen Zentralbank: Zum Delors-Bericht, in: Integration, No. 4, 1989, pp. 162–173.
Cf. the overview “Deutschland und Politische Union. Themen des Europäischen Rats”, in: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung of 27th April 1990, p. 6.
On this, cf. “Die EG als europäisches Gravitationszentrum; heikle Strategieprobleme für die EFTA-Länder”, in: Neue Zürcher Zeitung of 21st/22nd January 1990 (overseas edition, No. 16), pp. 13/14.
On this complex, cf. Gerda Zellentin: Die Kommunisten und die Einigung Europas, Frankfurt/Bonn 1964; Rolf Sannwald: Die Sowjetunion und die westeuropäische Integrationspolitik, in: Erik Boettcher (ed.): Ostblock, EWG und Entwicklungsländer, Stuttgart 1964, pp. 80–114; see also Eberhard Schulz: Moskau und die Europäische Integration, Munich/Vienna 1975, especially pp. 72–128.
Cf. Rudolf Hrbek: Euro-Kommunismus und EG. Einstellung und Politik euro-kommunistischer Parteien zur europäischen Integration, in: Hans-Georg Wehling, Peter Pawelka (eds.): Euro-Kommunismus und die Zukunft des Westens, Heidelberg/Hamburg 1979, pp. 167–195.
Published in EC Official Journal, No. L 157/35 of 24th June 1988.
On the following, cf. Horst G. Krenzler: Die Europäische Gemeinschaft und der Wandel in Mittel- und Osteuropa, in: Europa-Archiv, No. 3, 1990, pp. 89–96; see also Christian Meier: Ost/West-Verträge: Gestern unterschrieben, heute überholt, in: EG Magazin, No. 1/2, 1990, pp. 11–14.
On this, cf. Peter M. Schmidhuber: EG-Haushalt: Luft für Osteuropa?, in: EG-Magazin, No. 4, 1990, pp. 12 and 13.
Cf. for example Robert Picht: Deutsch-französische Beziehungen nach dem Fall der Mauer: Angst vor „Großdeutschland”?, in: Integration, No. 2, 1990, pp. 47–58.
On this, cf. the article “Macht Einigkeit zu stark? Die europäischen Partner fürchten den deutschen Wirtschaftsriesen”, in: Die Zeit of 30th March 1990, p. 23.
On this, cf. the very useful description presented in an Initial Working Document by Mr. Donnelly, a British member of the temporary EC committee, of 7th March 1990 regarding the possible problems which may occur for the EC as a result of the unification of Germany (PE 139.413).
Reprinted in: Agence Europe, No. 5150, p. 9.
The EC-Commissioner Martin Bangemann expresses a similar opinion in an article in Handelsblatt of 27th/28th April 1990, p. 13.
This Commission document was also available only in rough draft form at the time of writing; cf. the very informative articles in various periodicals, for example Neue Zürcher Zeitung of 21st April 1990, p. 19., or Handelsblatt of 27th/28th April 1990, p. 13.
Bernard Friedmann, the German member on the European Court of Auditors’ board of governors, painted a generally favourable picture of the amount of EC funds likely to flow into the GDR in future when interviewed in Handelsblatt of 21st March 1990.
A round-table discussion was held on these questions on 9th/10th March 1990 at the Institute for European Politics in Bonn. A paper by Wolfgang Wessels entitled “Zur europapolitischen Lage und Strategie Anfang 1990” was among those discussed.
Cf. William Wallace: Deutschlands zentrale Rolle: Ein Versuch, die europäische Frage neu zu definieren, in: Integration, No. 1, 1990, pp. 13–20.
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Hrbek, R. The EC and the changes in Central and Eastern Europe. Intereconomics 25, 131–139 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02924795
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02924795