Willy Brandt, Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), in Warsaw for the signing of the Treaty of Warsaw on 7 December 1970, kneels before the Warsaw Ghetto Memorial. His action symbolises an acknowledgment of the past and the desire for reconciliation embodied in the new Ostpolitik adopted by the Federal Government.

Title page of the Saar Treaty, signed on 27 October 1956 in Luxembourg by France and the Federal Republic of Germany.

Group photograph taken at the signing of the Treaty of Paris establishing the European Coal and Steel Community. From left to right: Paul van Zeeland (B), Joseph Bech (L), Joseph Meurice (B), Carlo Sforza (I), Robert Schuman (F), Konrad Adenauer (BRD), Dirk Stikker (NL) and Johannes van den Brink (NL).

Already in 1946, future Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), Konrad Adenauer, had declared himself in favour of integrating Western economies: this being in his opinion the firmest foundation for lasting peace in Europe.