The Rome Declaration was the document signed at an extraordinary session held by the Council of Ministers of the
Western European Union
The Western European Union (WEU; french: Union de l'Europe occidentale, UEO; german: Westeuropäische Union, WEU) was the international organisation and military alliance that succeeded the Western Union (WU) after the 1954 amendment of the 1948 ...
(WEU) (composed of the Foreign and Defence Ministers) in Rome on 26 and 27 October 1984 to mark the 30th anniversary of the
Modified Brussels Treaty (MTB). The declaration decided to make better use of WEU to increase cooperation between the member states in the field of security policy, and reactivated the WEU.
From the late 1970s onwards, efforts were made to add a security dimension to the
European Communities's
European Political Cooperation
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The European Political Co-operation (EPC) was introduced in 1970 and was the synonym for European Union foreign policy coordination until it was superseded by the Common Foreign and Security Policy in the Maastricht Treaty of Novembe ...
(EPC), which thus far had primarily dealt with economic aspects of security issues. Opposition from Denmark, Greece and Ireland to the Genscher-Colombo initiative in November 1981, whose aim was to extend the EPC's sphere of competence to security and defence questions, prompted the countries in favour to look for another framework of consultation. WEU was the favoured choice. Remaining EC countries - all WEU members - reactivate the WEU by means of the Rome Declaration.
Following the
European Communities' 1986
Single European Act
The Single European Act (SEA) was the first major revision of the 1957 Treaty of Rome. The Act set the European Community an objective of establishing a single market by 31 December 1992, and a forerunner of the European Union's Common Forei ...
, which codified the EPC in EU law contained little of substance on EC defence integration, the WEU member states adopted the ''Platform on European Security Interests'', which emphasised the need for intra-European defence integration and strengthening of NATO's European pillar.
See also
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Treaty of Brussels
The Treaty of Brussels, also referred to as the Brussels Pact, was the founding treaty of the Western Union (WU) between 1948 and 1954, when it was amended as the Modified Brussels Treaty (MTB) and served as the founding treaty of the Western Eu ...
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Western European Union
The Western European Union (WEU; french: Union de l'Europe occidentale, UEO; german: Westeuropäische Union, WEU) was the international organisation and military alliance that succeeded the Western Union (WU) after the 1954 amendment of the 1948 ...
References
External links
Original text Virtual Centre for Knowledge on Europe''The development of WEU'' Virtual Centre for Knowledge on Europe
{{EU treaties and declarations
Western European Union
1980s in Rome
1984 in Europe
1984 in Italy
October 1984 events in Europe
Events in Rome