economic and political alliance, named the European Economic Community
(EEC). It was joined by the UK 10 years later.
It is interesting to note how space exploration played an important role in the
creation of what would later form the European Union. The six countries that
signed the Treaty of Rome established three intergovernmental agencies to federate the steel industry, and the nuclear and space research centres. First, the
European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was established in 1951;
35
then the
European Atomic Energy Agency (EURATOM) in 1958;
36
and finally, two space
agencies, ELDO and ESRO, which merged into the current ESA
37
in 1975.
The ECSC regulated the coal and steel market essential for all industries. It was
intended to jointly exploit the Ruhr coalfields in the Rhineland, which were heavily used for Nazi rearmament in the thirties and are estimated at over 60 billion
tons. EURATOM and ESA were supposed to coordinate research programs to
ensure the peaceful use of nuclear energy and space systems. However, France
and England as winning powers decided to maintain a certain level of autonomy
in these two areas in order to support their nuclear arsenals and to develop power
plants for electricity supply.
Nevertheless, space exploration became one of the first sectors where European
integration took its steps. Innovative forms of economic policy were developed; in
fact, a common currency called ECU was employed within the two space agencies
to simplify the management of the various industry contracts among countries.
The ECU was the precursor of the euro, allowing companies to work together with
a single currency thirty years before it became a formal reality.
All this contributed to making Europe a conflict-free territory with a strong
socio-political imprint of a pacifist nature. However, this ideology is to many one
of the reasons behind a potential decline of the Europeans’ global geopolitical
role. It also becomes critical as new international threats emerge from Russia,
38
the instability of North Africa and the Middle East,
39
and even the US, as highlighted by the Trump’s request for a greater European financial commitment to
NATO, which likely will not be withdrawn by Biden’s administration.
In 2018, the German Chancellor Angela Merkel declared before the French
President Emmanuel Macron that
35
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/IT/TXT/?uri=legissum:xy0022.
36
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/IT/TXT/?uri=LEGISSUM:xy0024.
3 7
h t t p : / / w w w . e s a . i n t / A b o u t _ U s / W e l c o m e _ t o _ E S A / E S A _ h i s t o r y /
History_ESA_Convention_1975.
3 8
h t t p s : / / w w w . r e u t e r s . c o m / a r t i c l e / u s - n a t o - s u m m i t - p i p e l i n e /
trump-lashes-germany-over-gas-pipeline-deal-calls-it-russias-captive-idUSKBN1K10VI.
39
Cordesman, Anthony H. 2018. Stability in the Middle East Region: The Range of Forces
Shaping Stability and Instability. Centre for Strategic and International Studies CSIS.
74 Technopolitics of Space Between History and Realpolitik
(EEC). It was joined by the UK 10 years later.
It is interesting to note how space exploration played an important role in the
creation of what would later form the European Union. The six countries that
signed the Treaty of Rome established three intergovernmental agencies to federate the steel industry, and the nuclear and space research centres. First, the
European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was established in 1951;
35
then the
European Atomic Energy Agency (EURATOM) in 1958;
36
and finally, two space
agencies, ELDO and ESRO, which merged into the current ESA
37
in 1975.
The ECSC regulated the coal and steel market essential for all industries. It was
intended to jointly exploit the Ruhr coalfields in the Rhineland, which were heavily used for Nazi rearmament in the thirties and are estimated at over 60 billion
tons. EURATOM and ESA were supposed to coordinate research programs to
ensure the peaceful use of nuclear energy and space systems. However, France
and England as winning powers decided to maintain a certain level of autonomy
in these two areas in order to support their nuclear arsenals and to develop power
plants for electricity supply.
Nevertheless, space exploration became one of the first sectors where European
integration took its steps. Innovative forms of economic policy were developed; in
fact, a common currency called ECU was employed within the two space agencies
to simplify the management of the various industry contracts among countries.
The ECU was the precursor of the euro, allowing companies to work together with
a single currency thirty years before it became a formal reality.
All this contributed to making Europe a conflict-free territory with a strong
socio-political imprint of a pacifist nature. However, this ideology is to many one
of the reasons behind a potential decline of the Europeans’ global geopolitical
role. It also becomes critical as new international threats emerge from Russia,
38
the instability of North Africa and the Middle East,
39
and even the US, as highlighted by the Trump’s request for a greater European financial commitment to
NATO, which likely will not be withdrawn by Biden’s administration.
In 2018, the German Chancellor Angela Merkel declared before the French
President Emmanuel Macron that
35
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/IT/TXT/?uri=legissum:xy0022.
36
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/IT/TXT/?uri=LEGISSUM:xy0024.
3 7
h t t p : / / w w w . e s a . i n t / A b o u t _ U s / W e l c o m e _ t o _ E S A / E S A _ h i s t o r y /
History_ESA_Convention_1975.
3 8
h t t p s : / / w w w . r e u t e r s . c o m / a r t i c l e / u s - n a t o - s u m m i t - p i p e l i n e /
trump-lashes-germany-over-gas-pipeline-deal-calls-it-russias-captive-idUSKBN1K10VI.
39
Cordesman, Anthony H. 2018. Stability in the Middle East Region: The Range of Forces
Shaping Stability and Instability. Centre for Strategic and International Studies CSIS.
74 Technopolitics of Space Between History and Realpolitik