The economic consequences of the peace treaties in Central Europe, 1919-1920

Central Europe was the victim not of the decisions of the Great Powers in Paris but of the narrow selfishness of its nationalisms. The policy of the French Government was to maintain, in spite of the changes in-frontiers, the largest possible economic unity. The successor nations on the Commission for the Liquidation of Austria-Hungary had the opportunity to solve most of the problems of partition by themselves. Two articles in the Treaty of Saint-Germain called for a special five-year regime to facilitate the exports of coal and industrial products to Austria and Hungary. They were not applied. Austrian social democracy preferred to see the Danubian Federation collapse, in order to impose the Anschluss as the only solution.