ABSTRACT
Optimism in the Euro-Atlantic area has come about twice in the past 35 years. The most recent was at the end of the Cold War. The great divide between East and West was no longer. The world had stepped back from nuclear obliteration. However, the first occurrence was important but not nearly so grand. This was the series of agreements in 1975 that led to the Helsinki Final Act and the creation of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE). The Final Act froze the current status quo in the Euro-Atlantic area. Borders would not be challenged, national sovereignty would be strengthened, and confidence-and security-building measures would encourage an environment of peace and cooperation. With the dominance of the two superpowers playing Cold War politics, the Final Act is the best that we could have expected in 1975 and arguably until the fall of the Berlin Wall and the dissolution of the Soviet Union. The Final Act improved the environment of the Euro-Atlantic area, but the document did not fundamentally change it.
