A European Army? : The European Defense Community and the Politics of Transnational Influence in Post-War Europe, 1950-1954

Abstract

This dissertation explores the relationship between transnational networks and intergovernmental bargaining dynamics using the intergovernmental conferences dealing with German rearmament in post-war Europe as a case study. Drawing on quantitative and qualitative network analysis, it demonstrates how transnational networks among the political elite in post-war Europe deeply affected the preferences and strategic choices made by European leaders throughout the negotiations of the highly contested European Defense Community. Analytically it shows how and why informal transnational networks among political elites - bypassing traditional institutional channels - may exert a relatively high influence on the dynamics and outcomes of intergovernmental conferences