Empire by Integration: The United States and European Integration, 1945-1997

"Empire" by Integration is the first comprehensive survey of American policy towards European integration from 1945 to the present. Lundestad argues that, unlike other Great Powers, the US strongly supported the integration of the most important area under its influence: Western Europe. Taking a clear, chronological approach to the subject, this study tells its tale in full--from the beginnings of European integration after World War II, the challenge to American policy on European integration by Charles de Gaulle, and the modified support for European integration in the Nixon-Kissinger years up through the present-day revived support for European integration under the Clinton administration. Lundestad thus provides a succinct, provocative, and highly readable account of this crucial aspect of American-Western European relations.