(Pages 326-327)
-unification of Europe was an idea that people hoped would rebuild the nations economies which were shattered after world war II and to prevent new conflicts from taking place.

I) Steps Towards Unity

1) the first step was an industrial alliance
    a) France, West Germany, Italy and the Benelux countries signed a treaty that gave control of their coal and steel resources to the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC).
2) this was put in act because their resources were so tight that if they fought over them again, their economies would suffer greatly.
3) plus, no countries could secretly prepare for war because everyone knew what each other was manufacturing.
4) the ECSC would also set a tone of peace and cooperation that would require Europe to get along while dealing with resources in hopes the countries would fallow.
5) the next step was the European Economic Community (EEC)
    a) also called "the Common Market"
    b) this alliance removed trade barriers, set common economic goals, and allowed people to live/work in any member country.
6) The ECSC and the EEC combined into the European Community (EC) in 1967
7) in 73 the EC began admitting other European Nations.
8) in 93 the Maastricht Treaty took effect and the EC was changed to the European Union (EU)
9) by 2007 the EU included 27 member nations.

II) /issues Facing the EU Today

A)Growing Pains

1) Most of the nations that joined the EU during 2004-2007 were less prosperous than Western Europe due to their communistic past.
2) those difference could create frictions between EU members
     a) if turkey joins the EU there could be conflict due to the EU being mostly Christian and Turkey being muslim, Turkey has a record of human rights abuse and conflicts with Greece.

B) Economics and Politics

1) the Maastricht Treaty set the goal to replace national currencies with a single currency
     a) this would promote easier trade throughout UE members and further Unify.
2) 12 countries began to use the Euro for all transactions
     a) Denmark and the United Kingdom chose not to.
3) states had to be qualified for the euro
4) countries worried about how this would effect economic factors, like countries setting their own interest rates
5) the EU grew and people realized the old constitution was relevant for more than 20 nations.
     a) work on a new constitution began in 2002
6) changes created fear of the EU becoming a "Super Nation" and replace other nations
7) France and the Netherlands refused the constitution in 2005
    a) all nations had to accept the constitution for it to go into action
8) the Lisbon treaty contained many changes proposed for the constitution