The notion of “peace dividend” was forged in the 1980s to convey an idea that had already been analysed before: the link between security/peace, and economic growth. Without going into further details, one may wonder if this economic theory can be applied to the European Union, which budget has known a massive increase since the beginning of the European construction. To what extent has Europe benefited from a « peace dividend » through the European Union and its budget? In order to answer this question, we need to tackle three steps of European integration. In a first part, it is necessary to define precisely what a peace dividend is, and to what extent the beginning of the European construction can be considered as resulting from a peace dividend. Then, we shall analyze the evolution of the EC budget, focusing particularly on the case of enlargements.
[...] Thus, the reestablishment of political stability / democracy goes hand in hand with economic growth, even though there is necessarily a time lag between the actual democratic transition and the membership to the EU however, some financial instruments membership” instruments or loans from the European investment bank) help those countries to redress their economies even before the countries become member States. By enlarging, the EC strengthens its power and influence, and becomes a major peace and stability zone in the world. [...]
[...] However, I would not talk of a peace dividend in an economic way (as analysed in the first part) for several reasons: first, defence is a national policy, so asserting that the EC benefited from a cutback in its military expenditures would be irrelevant; then, if growth stemmed from peace, it was not linked to military reductions, as most member States were involved in the Cold War through the NATO; and finally, today's situation is radically different from the EC's expansion of the 1970s, with the slow economic growth of national GNPs, and the necessity to have a tight budgetary discipline plus the beginning of a European defence policy, made necessary by the US' withdrawal from European affairs, which is undoubtedly a challenge of importance for all member States. [...]
[...] To what extent does the evolution of the budget show the gain from a peace dividend? Throughout the European construction, the EEC budget has gained a considerable weight. Its rise is mainly due to the fact that European member States stopped being the unique source of the budget. In the early 1970s, when most of them were suffering from the beginning of an economic downturn, it was decided that a mechanism of own resources would contribute to the main part of the budget (Council's decision of April 21st 1970). [...]
[...] Furthermore, the ECSC was financed by a fee on the production of steel and coal, and this has an even stronger symbolic value: it shows that the defence industry was also the co-financer of the European construction. In that case, we may talk about a peace dividend insofar as part of the defence industry (through the ESCS) brought about the development of a political cooperation, and peace, which were a massive gain at the time. However, the existence of a peace dividend stricto sensu, in the aftermath of World War II, is much more problematic. [...]
[...] Like at the beginning of the European integration, the EU is very much concerned with peace and political stability. Indeed, being a member State of the Union implies a complete respect of the principles of democracy and human rights (this obligation has been officially legitimated by the definition of the so- called Copenhagen criteria in 1999). That is why enlargement has often accompanied democratic transitions: it was the case for Greece in 1981, Spain and Portugal in 1986, and the countries of central and Eastern Europe in 2004. [...]
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