Raymond Aron - A cseh eurorealizmus egyik forrása
Raymond Aron – One of the Sources of Czech Euro-realism

Summary/Abstract: The paper intends to analyze the various aspects of Aron’s attitude towards E urope in detail, to explain its logic and to characterize his position. Using the Habermasian terminology we might then sum up that as a politically engaged man Aron was a “Euro-federalist,” but as an objective sociologist he was only a “pro-market European”. Aron was intellectually fascinated by the idea of European federal unification and was actively engaged in pressing for such unification. He did not, however, believe that it could be achieved in the foreseeable future, especially not through the opening up of borders, free circulation of goods and capital. He did not believe either that the united Europe would provide security in the face of an external threat any more effectively than the European states of today if they ally but do not form a federation. He thought that the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is more vitally important to the life of Europe than European unification. The analysis makes it clear why and how Aron has become one of the thinkers to which Czech Euro-realists or their sympathizers from the social science community sometimes refer. Many of his thoughts about European integration are in line with the views declared in the Czech Republic by Václav Klaus and other Euro-realists.

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