This title was first published in 2001: In 1989, central and Eastern European countries broke free form the Soviet Union and looked upon the European Community to support their 'return to Europe'. Some years later, leaders of the European Community, meeting in Copenhagen in June 1993, endorsed for the first time the membership aspirations of the recently democratized countries of Central and Eastern Europe. This insightful text examines the negotiations, debates, tensions and contradictions behind the process of approximation between the two halves of Europe, both within the EC itself as well as between the EC and the countries of Central and Eastern Europe. The extensive consultation of unpublished internal documents, and a theoretically relevant and well-written analysis, ensures that this book is an indispensable resource for students and researchers of EC/EU relations with Central and Eastern Europe.

With the collapse of the Soviet Union and its Eastern European bloc, the reunification of Germany was a major episode in the history of modern Europe — and one widely held to have been opposed by that country's centuries-old enemy, France. But while it has been previously believed that French President François Mitterrand played a negative role in events leading up to reunification, this book shows that Mitterrand's main concern was not the potential threat of an old nemesis but rather that a reunified Germany be firmly anchored in a unified Europe. Updated with a new introduction and other materials, the book blends primary research and interviews with key actors in France and Germany to take readers behind the scenes of world governments as a new Europe was formed. Tilo Schabert had unprecedented, exclusive access to French presidential archives and here focuses on French diplomacy not only to dispel the notion that Mitterrand was reluctant to accept reunification but also to show how successful he was in bringing it about.