Pauli Heikkilä (Relevance of the Humanities Fellowship, Jan – Feb ‘26) will present his research on:

Uniting the Divided Continent from Afar. Eastern European Emigrant Attempts Towards European Unification during the Cold War

29 January 2026 (Thursday), 16:30 h.

Abstract: The project deals with proposals and ideas about European unification presented by Eastern European emigrant politicians during the Cold War. Their ultimate plan was to restore liberal democracy in their home countries, but they perceived it possible only in a transformed international system, in a united Europe. Liberation and unification were parallel goals. This is fundamentally similar to Alan Milvard’s concept of ”Rescue of European nation-state” in the historiography of Western European economic integration.

However, the concept and content of the idea of Europe was not shared by all emigrants, but it divided the political elites. The concept of federation is particularly elusive, as it can be used to justify both the separation of powers and forming greater units in certain political sectors. My pilot study (“Uniting Europe from Afar. Exile Plans for a Central European Federation in the Cold War.” In: Matthew Broad and Suvi Kansikas (eds.): European Integration Beyond Brussels. Unity in East and West Europe Since 1945. Palgrave Macmillan, London 2020) on exile political umbrella organizations showed different emphasis on the proposed union.

The research is based on archival material of Assembly of Captive European Nations (a collective organization for emigrants from nine countries), Free Europe Committee (a clandestine American organization to provide them official funding), and European organizations for unification, such as European Movement and Council of Europe. My forthcoming monograph follows the development of the relations in this triangle regarding the unification. Initially, Americans and emigrants shared the vision of uniting Europe as a bulwark against the Soviet Union. However, American sponsors and Western European colleagues gradually after 1956 abandoned the Eastern partners and started to create contacts to the civil society of the Soviet bloc.

During my lecture, I’ll present an outline for the monograph divided by six milestones.

Moderated by: Aleksandra Tobiasz