On 25 March 1957 six countries of Western Europe — Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany — signed the Treaty of Rome. This was not a treaty arising from war, like the Treaty of Versailles. It was a treaty of peace in which the countries agreed to form the European Economic Community (EEC). After two wars of appalling destruction, the leaders of these countries believed that the people of Europe needed to come together in a community that would promote cooperation and prosperity rather than war and conflict.
The first step towards the creation of the EEC was the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) established in 1951. It included the same six countries that formed the EEC in Rome and was designed to create a common market for coal and steel which would:
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