The EU was not conceived as an economic union, but as a tool to further the union of European nations via economics. France and Germany handed over a lot of co

The EU was not conceived as an economic union, but as a tool to further the union of European nations via economics. France and Germany handed over a lot of control of their war critical industrial infrastructure to 'High Authority' which preceded the European Commission, not for trades sake but to prevent world war III and form an counter weight against the Warsaw Pact. Robert Schuman ( the French Foreign Minister at the time ) declared: " Through the consolidation of basic production and the institution of a new High Authority, whose decisions will bind France, Germany and the other countries that join, this proposal represents the first concrete step towards a European federation, imperative for the preservation of peace."[1] The only one to envision Europe purely as an economic union was Churchill, and since the UK left his visions hold even less importance. [1] https://europa.eu/european-union/about-eu/symbols/europe-day/schuman-declaration_en https://europa.eu/european-union/about-eu/symbols/europe-day...