Basic HTML Version
Milestone for Europe:
GREECE JOINS
COMMONM
T
by
Gene H. Hogberg
The world's largest economic power expands from nine to ten- and it may not stop
there. Here is the significance of Greece's entry into the European Community.
O
N
N EW
YEAR
's
Day,
1981, Greece
became the Eu–
ropea n Com–
munity's tenth
member.
G reece's acces–
sion expands the
Community–
commonly callcd
the Common
Market- to near–
ly 270 milli on
people.
Of far more sig–
nificance, thc EC
has solidified its
position as thc
world's numbcr–
one economic and
trading power.
trade wi'll be trans–
ported in the holds
of Common Mar–
ket ships. Greece,
with 4,000 vessels,
is the world's pre–
mier shipping na–
tion. By vi rtue of
Greek member–
ship, fully one
third of worldwide
merchant-Aeet ton–
nage will belong to
the Community.
Long March fo r
Athens
Greece's formal in–
duction into the
Common Market
has bee n a long
time in coming. l t
First in Global
Trade
~
became an asso–
~
ciate member in
~
1962. Progress to–
~
ward full member–
iship, however ,
'-----------------------------'
~
stalled while t he
Most Americans,
Canadians, Australians and
others living in the Western
world not directly tied into the
Community's worldwide linkages,
have little comprehension of its
global impact.
The gross national product of
the Commun ity is about eq ual to
that of the United S tates. But the
EC far s urpasses the United
2
States in foreign t rade- $176 bil–
lion dollars more than Amcrica in
1979. The Comm un ity now
accounts for nearly one fou rth of
all the world's imports, and close
to 22 percent of total exports.
And this does not include trade
within
the Community.
Now, more than ever, much of
the ocean-going portion of this
Greek
military
ruled the country from 1967 to
1974.
The last step along the road to
fu ll membership was rcached
May 28, 1979, when official
papcrs were signed by Prime
Minister (now President) Con–
s tantine Karamanlis a nd repre–
sentatives of the nine EC coun–
tri es. Mr. Karamanlis- more
The
PLAIN TRUTH