ABSTRACT
This chapter analyzes the discussion and decisionmaking processes leading to German Democratic Republic (GDR) integration into the European Community. It describes the implementation of the most important administrative and regulatory steps and the risks and liabilities of these steps evaluated. The chapter highlights the role of the unified Germany in the European Community. The European Community (EC) enlargement through German economic and monetary union and the final integration of the GDR upon unification was a smooth and non-controversial act of unspectacular administrative ratification. With the impending collapse of the communist regime in the GDR and the prospect of German unification in 1989, perceptions of divergent national interests dominated the agenda in Europe. The Commission cautiously assessed the state of the GDR economy; attempts to compare basic parameters such as gross national product of the GDR to other EC members would not have yielded reliable conclusions due to unreliable GDR data.
