The New International Polity —the Eec On the World Stage
| Author | Kenneth J. Twitchett |
| DOI | 10.1177/004711787100301203 |
| Date | 01 December 1971 |
| Published date | 01 December 1971 |
| Subject Matter | Articles |
982
THE
NEW
INTERNATIONAL
POLITY
—THE
EEC
ON
THE
WORLD
STAGE
KENNETH
J.
TWITCHETT
Most
commentaries
on
the
European
Communities
usually
focus
on
the
internal
aspects
of
the
integration
process
in
Western
Europe
and
there
has
been
relatively
slight
emphasis
on
the
inter-
national
impact
of
the
Communities.
Until
comparatively
recently
this
concentration
on
the
internal
integration
process
tended
to
obscure
two
important
considerations.
The
first
is
that
for
most
non-member
states,
it
is
the
EEC’s
impact
on
the
international
system
per se
rather
than
the
integration
process
à
Six
which
has
the
greatest
immediate
relevance.
The
second
consideration
is
that
the
experiences
of
the
EEC
on
the
world
stage
and
the
lessons
which
can
be
drawn
from
them,
possibly
indicates
the
manner
whereby
other
international
groupings
might
in
the
distant
future
replace,
de
facto
if
not
de
jure,
sovereign
states
as
the
primary
international
actors.
The
current
debate
on
the
significance
of
the
EEC’s
enlarge-
ment
from
six
to
ten
members,
however,
has
focussed
more
attention
on
the
EEC’s
role
in
the
world.
The
Six
as
a
group
have
a
much
greater
international
economic
and
political
significance
than
they
could
have
separately.
The
existing
European
Community
accounts
for
about
20
per
cent
of
total
world
trade.
If
current
trends
are
maintained,
this
proportion
would
rise
to
some
30
per
cent
after
enlargement
to
include
Britain,
Denmark,
Ireland,
and
Norway.
The
fact
that
there
are
some
eighty-six
diplomatic
missions
accredited
to
the
EEC
in
Brussels
demonstrates
its
significance
as
a
centre
for
diplomatic
leverage.
&dquo;Few
national
capitals
attract
such
diplomatic
representation
---
a
remarkable
indication
of
the
importance
attached
to
an
institution
by
states
who
cannot
play
an
active
part
in
its
decision-making
process.
Although
the
one
hundred
and
twenty
or
so
diplomatic
missions
based
in
New
York
and
accredited
to
the
United
Nations
are
integral
components
of
the
Organisation’s
decision-making
process,
the
most
those
accredited
to
the
EEC
can
do
is
ascertain
the
general
trend of
its
affairs
and
attempt
to
influence
Community
policy
vis-ia-vis
their
respective
states,
from
the
outside&dquo;.’
While
the
United
Nations
is
intended
to
be
universal
in
its
membership,
under
Article
237
of
the
Rome
Treaty
only
European
states
are
eligible
for
membership
of
the
EEC.
This
article
examines
the
EEC’s
international
impact
in
the
light
of
the
progress
which
has
been
made
towards
formulating
a
common
Community
foreign
policy,
common
commercial
and
monetary
policies,
common
negotiating
positions
by
the
Six
in
international
organisations,
and,
most
importantly,
the
significance
attached
to
the
EEC
by
non-member
states
in
the
formation
and
1
See
Carol
Ann
Cosgrove
and
Kenneth
J.
Twitchett,
(eds.),
The
New
International
Actors :
The
UN
and
the
EEC
(London,
1970),
p.
45.
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