Since 'Cold War Europe' was first published, the reunification of Germany, the collapse of the USSR and the ensuing chaos in former Yugoslavia have considerably modified our perspective on the period. Substantially expanded and rewritten, this new edition takes account of these events and sets them in the context of over forty years of Cold War tensions. In particular, analysis of events in Eastern Europe has been greatly extended, a chapter on Italy has been added, and social and economic developments across Europe are drawn into a new introduction.

The study is directed primarily at the principal European states and at four significant developments: the rise and decline of political tensions, Western European unity and the Maastricht Treaty, the triumph of liberal democracy in southern Europe, and the failure of communism in the east. Cold War Europe offers an excellent introduction for anyone seeking to understand the political history of Europe since 1945.