At the end of World War 2 Europe was left in ruins. This alliance was formed initially as a means to rebuild the war torn continent. It was conceived by Winston Churchill to be kind of a " United States of Europe."  He advocated and fostered the growth of this United Europe movement. Many people joined and soon the European Union was formed. 

Its first major accomplishments was the managing and handling of the aid money and reconstruction assistance provided by the Marshall Plan. Through the EU Europe was rebuilt and new strong economic and political ties were formed during this period.

Throughout time the EU has grown and now serves as a major economic force in Europe. Special benefits are given to European countries in the EU and in return they agree to abide by the many treaties and regulations that the EU has for its member states. This in effect encourages countries to behave according to International Law and respect Human Rights to get the benefits of the economic security provided by the European Union. 

This strategy has worked so far, and as proof of this many European countries have switched their currency to the Euro, a new multinational European currency endorsed by the EU.  

There are many national Red Cross organizations which are healthcare charity and humanitarian assistance organizations. However, the International Red Cross is a much more dynamic and influential group. There primary goal is to provide relief to people in armed conflicts across the globe. It was founded in the 1860s as a response to the wars that were occurring at the time. The International Red Cross is also a major source of International Law. The reason is that through its mission to provide relief to people in armed conflict it has also been strengthened in its powers by the rules of war established by the Geneva Conventions after the first and second world wars. It is probably best known for its roles in examining POWs across the globe. This is one of its primary functions seeing as not letting the Red Cross examine POWs can be a major embarrassment to a country at war. The Red Cross makes sure that the rights of those POWs are respected and that the prisoners are not violated. It also helps to protect civilians from armed conflict. It raises awareness about civilian areas and strongly encourages countries at war to due their utmost to protect civilians. Finally, it provides much needed economic relief to people whose lives have been devastated by armed conflict.