Postwar

In his book "Postwar", Tony Judt makes a compelling argument for the rebirth of Europe not as a reaction to the coming Cold War, but rather as an essential development borne of economic, political, and yes, military necessity.  Previous to World War II, there was little unity among European states; rather, they in face competed for hegemony over the region.  What remained after WWII was a group of individual states that all had been decimated in the war.  These states recognized the necessity of banding together to help rebuild, to prevent the utter destruction that took place during the war from happening again.  It is only after WWII that the world began to recognize Europe as a unique entity, not just a group of competing states.

In a sense it seems somewhat similar to the United States after gaining its independence.  What remained was a ragtag collection of states that had suffered serious losses during the revolution and in addition held individual interests.  This loose confederation was soon proven to be a failure, and a more direct political unity was required.  Judt argues that a similar transformation took place in Europe.  While the European Union wasn't formed until 1993, other organizations began to form shortly after the war, such as NATO, which provided the greater political, economic and military unity that was required in the postwar time period.  While certainly one couldn't say that all European states agree on every issue (just look at the attempt to pass an EU constitution), there is a great deal more unity than in the pre-WWII era.  Should Europe (or for that matter, the United States) have chosen to continue as a group of competing states, it seems quite likely that it would have failed to achieve the political clout and economic power that it holds today.  Instead, Europe made the wise choice of uniting and in doing so has become one of the most powerful players in international politics today.