Germany · 50 years of the Treaties of Rome

The “Treaties of Rome (Römischen Verträge)” refer to two agreements: the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (EEC) and the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom). The contracting parties were Belgium, the Federal Republic of Germany (Bundesrepublik Deutschland), France, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Both treaties entered into force in 1958.

The EEC was intended to create a common market. This included the gradual removal of customs duties between the member states, a common external tariff, and the free movement of persons, goods, services and capital. There were also common regulations, among other areas, for agriculture, transport and competition. Institutions such as the Commission, the Council of Ministers, the Parliamentary Assembly and the Court of Justice made it possible to adopt binding decisions not only through traditional cooperation between governments, but also through Community institutions.

Euratom was intended to coordinate the peaceful use of nuclear energy. Its provisions included joint research, safety controls for nuclear materials and rules governing the supply of nuclear raw materials. While the EEC later became the European Community and eventually formed part of the European Union, Euratom continues to exist on its own treaty basis.

The treaties built on the European Coal and Steel Community (Europäische Gemeinschaft für Kohle und Stahl), founded in 1951. After the Second World War, economic interdependence was intended in particular to ensure lasting cooperation between France and the Federal Republic of Germany. At the same time, in the context of the Cold War, the Western European states were seeking closer political and economic cooperation. The Treaties of Rome extended this approach from individual industries to large parts of the economy.

The venue on the Capitoline Hill was also historically significant: the signing took place at the Palazzo dei Conservatori, part of today’s Capitoline Museums (Kapitolinischen Museums). For the anniversary, the euro-area countries issued 2-euro commemorative coins jointly for the first time, bearing the same basic design. This linked the treaty-based origins of European economic integration with the common currency as a later result of this integration process.