e communities functioned as individual entities until 1 July 1967, when the executives of the then three existing com munities were merged into a single commission, after which, the goals and objectives of the three communities began to be pur sued in a coordinated and cohesive manner (Paxton, 1990). The Commission consists of members representing each member state.
The Council of Ministers, also composed of the member nations of the European Communities, represents the national interests of European Community member states. The Council has the authority to overrule some actions taken by the Commission in the name of the European Communities as a single entity (Brewin, 1987). It has been held that the contemporary Euro pean Council of government leaders "seems to be providing the
3political authority characteristic of a classic confederation (Brewin, & McAllister, 1988).
The long term goals of the European Communities are (1) the integration of the economies of the member countries, and (2) the political unity of the member countries. Pursuit of economic integration has been both more rapid and more succes sful than has the pursuit of political unity, although economic integration has also been beset with significant problems.
Although the European Communities have passed through many structural transitions, they really do not (and cannot) speak with a single political voice in contemporary international relations. The development of the European Economic Community into the world's largest economic force has, however, compelled "third parties to treat . . . it as an important actor in its own right. Yet it is plainly not a sovereign state" (Brewin, & McAllister, 1988, p. 1).
In the summer of 1978, the member countries of the Euro pean Communities agreed to the formation of the European Mone tary System, and the organization became a functional reality in March 1979 (van Ypersele, 1985). While th...