Abstract
The notion of “peace dividend” was forged in the 1980s to convey an idea that had already been analysed before: the link between security/peace, and economic growth. Without going into further details, one may wonder if this economic theory can be applied to the European Union, which budget has known a massive increase since the beginning of the European construction. To what extent has Europe benefited from a « peace dividend » through the European Union and its budget? In order to answer this question, we need to tackle three steps of European integration. In a first part, it is necessary to define precisely what a peace dividend is, and to what extent the beginning of the European construction can be considered as resulting from a peace dividend. Then, we shall analyze the evolution of the EC budget, focusing particularly on the case of enlargements.
