Brussels Treaty

: WEU meeting in Marseile (Photo: French Presidency Web-site)

Created the common defence alliance between the UK, France and the Benelux countries. It was signed in 1948 and called the Western European Union, WEU.

It is now practically absorbed by the EU.

Notes

One element remains: Art. 5, which guarantees automatic mutual defence against possible attacks.

The future

The Lisbon Treaty develops the concept of common defence in then EU and opens the way for a special “structured cooperation” in military and defence matters for some of the countries..

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