New Superpowers

Devastated by war, both in terms of human losses and economically, and shocked by the violence perpetrated by the Nazi regime European countries saw their influence and power in the international scene substituted by two new superpowers, the United States and the Soviet Union. Led not only by fear of a return of the Nazi regime, but also by the desire of peace and a new place in the international stage, Western European countries started to promote different forms of cooperation between them.

Pro-European Movements

One of the proposals to reconstruct Europe, promoted by some Pro-Europeans movements, was the federalist option that followed the model of the USA. One of the supporters of that idea was The Union of European Federalists (UEF), founded in 1946 in Paris. Also Winston Churchill was also an enthusiast of the Pro-European movements, and called for a “kind of United States of Europe”, but he was in favour of international cooperation rather than the creation of a supranational institution at the European level.

Benelux Customs Union

On January 1, 1948, the Benelux Customs Union, an economic organization focused on economic cooperation created in 1944, when the governments of Belgium, The Netherlands and Luxembourg were exiled in London, came into effect. Benelux is considered a precursor for European cooperation and integration that followed. Although in the beginning it was focused on customs agreements, over the years Benelux countries implemented more economic and political cooperation.

Although these agreements were aimed at achieving peace settlements in Europe, the superpowers were more focused on their own interests. Which set the stage for the Cold War.