Political détente in the Alpine region in the early 1970s. Relations between Italy, Austria, and the Federal Republic of Germany

Abstract

The article examines how political détente began in the central Alpine region in the early 1970s. It focuses on how Italy, Austria, Switzerland, and West Germany began cross-border contacts, encounters, and cooperation. In this context, political détente at the European level, especially in the Western European frameworks of the Eec and the Efta, played a decisive role. Moreover, regional and national politicians also initiated and promoted cross-border cooperation in the Alpine regions. The archival material and press articles examined provide a detailed insight into the process of political détente between the Alpine border regions. In particular, the article highlights the obstacles that the protagonists of the détente process had to overcome between 1969 and 1973, as well as the consequences that the new transalpine cooperation had for economic, social, and cultural development in the central Alpine region.