In the process of European integration the time period between the Single European Act (1986/1987) and the Treaty of Nice (2001/2003) was clearly more dynamic than the preceding phase. Historic events like German reunification, the end of the Cold War and the disintegration of the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia provided new challenges. One of the most important of these was entering into new relations with the former Communist countries of Eastern Europe. Absorbing these countries into European integration had major consequences for the effectiveness of European institutions. Relations had to be built up with countries that were not admitted as well, if only because their instability constituted a potential danger. For a community that had been focussed on itself for a long time and had brought forth little in the way of foreign policy, that was no easy task. At the same time the seventies and eighties brought forth ambitious plans for even closer cooperation in the market and economy. In four successive intergovernmental conferences, Member States attempted to find compromises for these disputed issues and for changes in the European institutions and decision-making processes that were necessary as a result of these new plans. Certainly, the Treaty of Nice entailed the necessity of another kind of European Union. The main challenges were the imminent ‘big bang’ enlargement, the responsibility on the EU's part for peace in Europe and the increasing scepticism of European citizens. The grand projects set up by Member States – either for economic and monetary union or for foreign and security policy – were now complemented by greater attention to the needs of the citizen. European governance at the level of Member States or regions became at least as important as high politics in Brussels. The achievement of the common market and, later on, of the Economic and Monetary Union demanded a high degree of cooperation and direction at European, national and regional levels.

The Fall of the Berlin Wall and the Rise of a New Europe

After the establishment of the ECSC and the Treaties of Rome, the Treaty of Maastricht (1992/1993) was the most important turning point for European integration. The ECSC and the Treaties of Rome marked both a farewell to ambitions of idealistic Europeanism that had encompassed the Council of Europe, and the rise of a functionalistic, technocratic Europe.