In this paper I examine the liberal party family (ELDR) and its relations with the new liberal parties in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE). Through document studies and interviews, I have followed the ELDR activities in CEE during the first years after 1989. The focus is put on the incentives, strategies and problems which surround the contacts between the ELDR and the liberal parties in CEE. When it comes to incentives for establishing the contact there are both idealistic and strategic reasons. As for the liberal parties in CEE the reasons can vary between a survival strategy in a cruel electoral climate to tactical moves against sister parties at home. The problems for ELDR had much to do with choosing partner and coordinating all the liberal actors in the West that wanted to contribute. In the paper, I also discuss the importance of the historical factors and whether neofunctionalist logic can be used in the analysis of this process.