The Rebirth of Europe - Softcover

Pond, Elizabeth

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0815771592 ISBN 13: 9780815771593

Publisher: Brookings Institution Press, 2002

Synopsis

This revised and updated paperback edition covers the introduction of the euro, the fall of Milosevic, and the impact of September 11 in European integration. The rejuvenation of Europe as a totalitarian century ends and a global century begins is a remarkable story. This book brings together the three dynamics of Europe's position at this extraordinary moment: European monetary union, the deepening of intra-EU cooperation, and the widening of the EU and NATO to take in central European members. It looks at the broad political and policy implications of EMU and shows how the United States views this integration. Elizabeth Pond, a longtime observer of events in Europe and Russia, sees these developments as the beginning of a new postnational European system that is replacing the centuries-old nation-state system. She shows how belligerence and anarchy have faded away on the European continent as compulsory cold war cooperation becomes a habit and as French-German reconciliation becomes the pattern for reconciliation between other old enemies. She follows NATO's transformation into a reluctant peacemaker in Bosnia and the United States' decision to remain a European power. She describes the leap of faith needed to create European monetary union and charts the magnetic attraction of both NATO and the EU in shaping the democratic, economic, and social revolutions in central Europe. She warns about the strains that will face the transatlantic relationship when the euro is on a par with the dollar as a reserve currency. And she concludes by agreeing with former Polish foreign minister Wladyslaw Barteszewski that we are witnessing, after the original birth of European consciousness a millennium ago, the rebirth of Europe.

About this title

About the Author:

Elizabeth Pond is a journalist based in Germany. Currently a correspondent for the Washington Quarterly, she was a longtime European correspondent for the Christian Science Monitor. She is the author, most recently, of Friendly Fire: The Near-Death of the Transatlantic Alliance (Brookings, 2003) and The Rebirth of Europe (Brookings, revised 2002).

Review:

"A shrewd observer of Germany and eastern Europe, Pond has presented an informative overview of European affairs since 1989.... an eminently readable account. " — Foreign Affairs

"A detailed and relentless focus for students of international relations who want to debate whether Europe is darkening, or brightening. " — Christian Science Monitor

"Written with gusto and a suggestive style.... This book is to be highly recommended to anyone looking for arguments based on hard facts that endorse the option of creating an increasingly strong framework for the European Union. " — International Affairs

"Veteran journalist Elizabeth Pond... sees a Europe that is doing well at overcoming 'impulses of nationalism, habit, and fear.' The Rebirth of Europe provides a thoughtful, fundamentally optimistic appraisal of the continent's prospects. " — Dallas Morning News

"An important and well-written guide to the new Europe. " — Survival

"This is the sequel to Elizabeth Pond's superb book about German unification, Beyond the Wall. It continues the story of solution of the age-old 'German problem' to portray the ongoing healing of a divided Europe. " —Richard Holbrooke, Former U.S. ambassador to the U.N. and former U.S. ambassador to Germany

About this edition

• Publisher: Brookings Institution Press
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0815771592
• ISBN 13: 9780815771593
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 2
• Number of pages: 351