We use a new data set for European manufacturing firms to assess whether a short term technological convergence process has been taking place among manufacturing firms in seven European countries. The empirical analysis aims to study the effects of international co-operative R&D on short term productivity gains among European manufacturing firms and to clarify the role of spillovers in the process of technological diffusion. We find substantial evidence of convergence across firms in Europe, that the overall convergence process is influenced by the presence of international R&D co-operation and that symmetric Research Joint Ventures (RJVs) increase productivity to a greater extent than RJVs between asymmetric firms. The convergence process is affected by the presence of RJVs, but in this analysis we do not detect that convergence is positively affected by country and sectoral trade and patents.