Western Europe
Western Europe refers to the western part of Europe. However, it is often used to distinguish it from the Eastern bloc in politics, history, and culture rather than geographical classification. It has a common political, economic, and cultural identity with the United States and Canada, countries founded by immigrants in the region. Until World War I, Western Europe was considered to include France, Britain, Ireland, and Benelux in the British Isles. During the Cold War, it was often used as a western camp that used a market economy to prepare for the Eastern bloc under the planned economy. At that time, it was a term referring to democratic countries such as Sweden, Switzerland and Finland, as well as Spain and Portugal, which were dictatorships under the market economy system. In this sense, Greece and Turkey in the southeastern part of Europe were also included in Western Europe. Here are some common Western European countries: