ABSTRACT
German companies are eager to invest in joint ventures with the eastern countries and are by far the largest western partners trading with Central and Eastern Europe. The situation is quite similar between Western Europe in 1947 and former communist Europe. In the first two years after the Second World War almost all Europe was laying in ruins, its populace despairing and industry decimated. Therefore the aid was viewed as a means of assuring long term political stability by yoking together European ancestral rivals, Germany and France, in a system of economic integration. The variety of languages in Eastern Europe, with no common language spoken by substantial parts of the population in each state, is another obstacle in resolving tensions and possible conflicts. Czechoslovakia, as each of the Central and Eastern European nations, will embark upon a path of economic development which, without careful thinking and planning, could exacerbate already serious environmental problems.
