European Union
| |||
| Motto | In varietate concordia English: United in diversity (see European symbols) | ||
| |||
| Official languages of the Union | See Languages of the European Union; each member states may designate other languages as official therewithin | ||
| Council's President | Ireland (Prime Minister: Bertie Ahern) (until 30 June, 2004) | ||
| Commission's President | Romano Prodi | ||
| Parliament's President | Pat Cox | ||
| Area - Total | Ranked 8th if counted as a single country 3,892,685 km2 (EU 25) | ||
| Population - Total (2004) - Population density>Density | Ranked 3rd if counted as a single country 453,300,000 (EU 25) 116.4 people/km² | ||
| GDP (base PPP) - Total (2002) - GDP/head | Ranked 1st if counted as a single country € 8.45×1012 (US$ 10.84×1012) [1] € 22,310 | ||
| Formation - Declared - Recognised | Maastricht treaty 7 February, 1992 1 November, 1993 | ||
| Currencies in the Union | EUR or €); other currencies in member states: Danish krone>DKK (inside ERM II), SEK, GBP From May 2004: PLN, HUF, MTL, CYP, SIT, EEK, LVL, LTL, CZK, SKK | ||
| Time zone | UTC 0 to +2 | ||
| Anthem | Ode to Joy | ||
| Internet TLD | None. (An .eu TLD is planned. The EU currently uses the second-level domain .eu.int.) | ||
| Calling Codes | Each member state has its own calling code. In zones 3 and 4 | ||
- See also the List of European Union pages
The European Union has many activities, the most important being a common single market, consisting of a customs union, a single currency (though some member states retain their own), a Common Agricultural Policy and a Common Fisheries Policy. The European Union also has various initiatives to co-ordinate activities of the member states.
Since 4 October 2003, the Intergovernmental Conference is deliberating on the Draft Constitutional Treaty which had been submitted by the Convention on the Future of Europe on 20 June 2003. A first attempt to reach an overall compromise failed in December 2003 when European Heads of State could not agree on a new formula defining the so-called qualified majority rule for voting in the Council.
The power of the European Union reaches far beyond its borders because to sell within it, it is helpful to conform to its standards. Once a non-member country's factories, farmers and merchants conform to EU standards, most of the costs of joining the union have been sunk. At that point, harmonizing laws to become a full member creates more wealth (by eliminating the customs costs) with only the tiny investment of actually changing the laws.
Supporters of the European Union argue that the EU is a force for peace and democracy. In the early 1970's Greece, Portugal and Spain were all dictatorships. The business communities in these three countries wanted to be in the EU. This created a strong impetus for democracy there. Since the formation of the EEC as it then was, there have been no wars in Western Europe. Before that wars were a periodic feature of European History. The European Union is extending its influence to the east. Hopefully the type of wars which plagued parts of Former Yugoslavia in the 1990's will also become a thing of the past.
For a more detailed history, see the article History of the European Union.
Many countries, such as Monaco and Andorra, while not being member states have special agrements with the union. (See the special relationships with the EU article)
The total area of the 25 member states (2004) of the European Union is 3,892,685 km². Were it a country, it would be the eighth largest in the world by area. The number of EU citizens (all EU member state citizens or subjects, under the terms of the Maastricht treaty) in the 25 member EU is approximately 453 million as of March 2004. This would be the third largest in the world after India and China.
The EU economy is expected to grow further over the next decade as more countries join the union - especially considering that the new States are usually poorer than the EU average, and hence the expected fast GDP growth will help achieve the dynamic of the united Europe. However, GDP per capita of the whole Union will fall over the short-term.Status
The European Union is the most powerful regional organisation in existence. In certain areas, where Member States have transferred national sovereignty rights to the Union (e.g. currency, monetary policy, the internal market, foreign trade), the EU begins to resemble a federal state. However, the Union is not organised federally but according to the subsidiarity principle (a term expressly created to describe the peculiar organisation of the Union's competencies). Also, the Member States remain the Masters of the Treaties and the Union does not have the power to transfer additional competencies from the Member States onto itself. On account of its unique structure, the European Union can be regarded not merely as an international organisation, but rather as a sui generis entity (i.e. an entity unlike any other).Current issues
Major issues concerning the European Union at the moment include its enlargement south and east (see below), the European constitution proposed by the Convention, the Union's relationship with the United States of America and participation in the Euro by those member states currently outside the Eurozone.Origins
The original impetus for the founding of (what was later to become) the European Union was the desire to rebuild Europe after the disastrous events of World War II, and to prevent Europe from ever again falling victim to the scourge of war. For more details see History of the European Union.Methods
To accomplish this aim, the European Union attempts to form infrastructure that crosses state borders. The harmonized standards create a larger, more efficient market, because the member states can form a single customs union without loss of health or safety. For example, states whose people would never agree to eat the same food might still agree on standards for labelling and cleanliness.History
The body was originally known as the European Economic Community (informally called the Common Market in the UK), this later changed to the European Community and then to the European Union. The EU has evolved from a trade body into an economic and political partnership.Member states and enlargement
From 1 May 2004, the European Union will comprise 25 member states.
In 1950 the six founding members were:
Nine further states have joined in successive waves of enlargement: 
Overseas territories status quo
For the status of Greenland, the Isle of Man, and the Canary islands, amongst others, see the article on Special member state territories and their relations with the EU.Economic status
Currently (February 2004) the EU, considered as a unit, has the largest economy in the world, with a 2002 GDP of 8,447 billion euro. The United States, by comparison, has the largest GDP of a single country - 10,450 billion dollars (or 8,170 billion euro at the current exchange rate of $1.28 per euro). The European Union continues to enjoy a significant trade surplus, as opposed the widening trade deficit being experienced by the US. However, as of 2004 the European Union has generally been suffering stagnant economic growth and low employment (averaged across the Union).
| GDP per capita | ||
| Member state | US$ PPP | EU25=100 |
| Austria | 27,900 | 122 |
| Belgium | 29,200 | 127 |
| Cyprus | 15,000 | 65 |
| Czechia | 15,300 | 67 |
| Denmark | 28,900 | 126 |
| Estonia | 11,000 | 48 |
| Finland | 25,800 | 113 |
| France | 26,000 | 113 |
| Germany | 26,200 | 114 |
| Greece | 19,100 | 83 |
| Hungary | 13,300 | 58 |
| Ireland | 29,300 | 128 |
| Italy | 25,100 | 110 |
| Latvia | 8,900 | 39 |
| Lithuania | 8,400 | 37 |
| Luxembourg | 48,900 | 213 |
| Malta | 17,200 | 75 |
| Netherlands | 27,200 | 119 |
| Poland | 9,700 | 42 |
| Portugal | 19,400 | 85 |
| Slovakia | 12,400 | 54 |
| Slovenia | 19,200 | 84 |
| Spain | 21,200 | 93 |
| Sweden | 26,000 | 113 |
| United Kingdom | 25,500 | 111 |
| EU-25 | 22,911 | 100 |
This picture of increasing centralisation is counter-balanced by two points.
Firstly, some Member States have a domestic tradition of strong regional government. This has led to an increased focus on regional policy and the European regions. A Committee of the Regions was established as part of the Treaty of Maastricht.
Secondly, EU policy areas cover a number of different forms of co-operation.
All prospective members must enact legislation in order to bring them into line with the common European legal framework, known as the Acquis Communautaire. (See also European Free Trade Association (EFTA), European Economic Area (EEA) and Single European Sky).
In practice, the European Community is simply the old name for the European Union. Legally, however, they must be distinguished. The European Union has no legal personality; it is not an international organisation, but a mere bloc of states. The European Community is one of the three "pillars" of the European Union, and the most important, being the only one with formal institutions. The other two, Common Foreign and Security Policy, and Justice and Home Affairs, are much looser groupings, but as time goes by more and more of these issues are transferred to the jurisdiction of the Community. The Community itself was formed by the merger in 1967 of the European Economic Community, the European Coal and Steel Community, and Euratom..
A basic tension exists within the European Union between intergovernmentalism and supranationalism. Intergovernmentalism is a method of decision-making in international organisations where power is possessed by the member-states and decisions are made by unanimity. Independent appointees of the governments or elected representatives have solely advisory or implementational functions. Intergovernmentalism is used by most international organisations today.
An alternative method of decision-making in international organisations is supranationalism. In supranationalism power is held by independent appointed officials or by representatives elected by the legislatures or people of the member states. Member-state governments still have power, but they must share this power with other actors. Furthermore, decisions are made by majority votes, hence it is possible for a member-state to be forced by the other member-states to implement a decision against its will.
Some forces in European Union politics favour the intergovernmental approach, while others favour the supranational path. Supporters of supranationalism argue that it allows integration to proceed at a faster pace than would otherwise be possible. Where decisions must be made by governments acting unanimously, decisions can take years to make, if they are ever made. Supporters of intergovernmentalism argue that supranationalism is a threat to national sovereignty, and to democracy, claiming that only national governments can possess the necessary democratic legitimacy. Intergovernmentalism has historically been favoured by France, and by more Eurosceptic nations such as Britain and Denmark; while more integrationist nations such as Belgium, Germany, and Italy have tended to prefer the supranational approach.
In practice the European Union strikes a balance between two approaches. This balance however is complex, resulting in the often labyrinthine complexity of its decision-making procedures.
Starting in March 2002, a Convention on the Future of Europe again looked at this balance, among other things, and proposed changes. These changes were discussed at an Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) in December 2003, but no agreement was reached.
However, some member-states opposed the addition of these powers to the Community on the grounds that they were too sensitive to national sovereignty for the community method to be used, and that these matters were better handled intergovernmentally. To the extent that at that time the Community dealt with these matters at all, they were being handled intergovernmentally, principally in European Political Co-operation (EPC).
As a result, these additional matters were not included in the European Community; but were tacked on externally to the European Community in the form of two additional 'pillars'. The first additional pillar (Common Foreign and Security Policy, CFSP) deal with foreign policy, security and defence issues, while the second additional pillar (JHA, Justice and Home Affairs), dealt with the remainder.
Recent amendments in the treaties of Amsterdam and Nice have made the additional pillars increasingly supranational. Most important among these has been the transfer of policy on asylum, migration and judicial co-operation in civil matters to the Community pillar, effected by the Amsterdam treaty. Thus the third pillar has been renamed Police and Judicial Co-operation in Criminal Matters, or PJCC.
Official EU website, europa.eu.int, in 11 languages. Some subpages:
Main policies
As the changing name of the European Union (from European Economic Community to European Community to European Union) suggests, it has evolved over time from a primarily economic union to an increasingly political one. This trend is highlighted by the increasing number of policy areas that fall within EU competence: political power has tended to shift upwards from the Member States to the EU.
The tension between EU and national (or sub-national) competence is an enduring one in the development of the European Union. (See also Intergovernmentalism vs. Supranationalism (below), Euroscepticism.)Single Market: Internal aspects
Single market: External aspects
Increasing co-operation/harmonisation of other areas
Structure of the European Union
The role of the European Community within the Union
Intergovernmentalism vs. supranationalism
The Three Pillars
European Union policies are divided into three main areas, called pillars.
Within each pillar, a different balance is struck between the supranational and intergovernmental principles. Supranationalism is strongest in the first pillar, while the other two pillars function along more intergovernmental lines. In the CFSP and JHA pillars the powers of the Parliament, Commission and European Court of Justice with respect to the Council are significantly limited, without however being altogether eliminated. The balance struck in the first pillar is frequently referred to as the "community method", since it is that used by the European Community.Origin of the three pillars structure
The pillar structure had its historical origins in the negotiations leading up to the Maastricht treaty. It was desired to add powers to the Community in the areas of foreign policy, security and defence policy, asylum and immigration policy, criminal co-operation, and judicial co-operation.The Single Institutional Framework
The three communities, and the three pillars possess a common institutional structure. The European Union has five institutions:
There are also two advisory committees to the above institutions, which advise them on economic and social (principally relations between workers and employers) and regional issues:See also
External links
The European Union On-Line
Separate EU institution websites
Other sites
Member countries: Austria | Belgium | Cyprus | Czech Republic | Denmark | Estonia | Finland | France | Germany | Greece | Hungary | Ireland | Italy | Latvia | Lithuania | Luxembourg | Malta | Netherlands | Poland | Portugal | Slovakia | Slovenia | Spain | Sweden | United Kingdom
Recognised candidate countries: Bulgaria | Romania | Turkey
Likely candidate countries: Croatia | Macedonia (FYROM)