Jean Monnet

“There is no future for the people of Europe other than in union.”

“People only accept change when they are faced with necessity, and only recognize necessity when a crisis is upon them.”

“Make men work together, show them that beyond their differences and geographical boundaries there lies a common interest.”

“Nothing is possible without men; nothing is lasting without institutions.”

“Building Europe is a way of building peace.”

“We are not making a coalition of states, we are uniting men.”

“The sovereign nations of the past can no longer solve the problems of the present: they cannot ensure their own progress or control their own future. And the Community itself is only a stage on the way to the organized world of tomorrow.”

“I am not an optimist, I am determined.”

“Europe has never existed. One must genuinely create Europe.”

“There will be no peace in Europe, if the states are reconstituted on the basis of national sovereignty.”

“Men pass, but institutions remain.”

“To create Europe is to create peace.”