Flag

Motto:"Unitedindiversity"[1][2][3]

Anthem:"OdetoJoy"(orchestral)[2]

Capital Brussels(defacto)[4]5051N421E

Largestcities LondonandParis

Officiallanguages

Demonym European[5]

Type Politicoeconomicunion

Memberstates

LeadersPresidentoftheEuropeanCommission

JeanClaudeJuncker

PresidentoftheEuropeanCouncil

DonaldTusk

EuropeanUnionFromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

"EU"redirectshere.Forotheruses,seeEU(disambiguation).

TheEuropeanUnion(EU)isapoliticoeconomicunionof28memberstatesthatarelocatedprimarilyinEurope.[12][13]TheEUoperatesthroughasystemofsupranationalinstitutionsandintergovernmentalnegotiateddecisionsbythememberstates.[14][15]Theinstitutionsare:theEuropeanCommission,theCounciloftheEuropeanUnion,theEuropeanCouncil,theCourtofJusticeoftheEuropeanUnion,theEuropeanCentralBank,theEuropeanCourtofAuditors,andtheEuropeanParliament.TheEuropeanParliamentiselectedeveryfiveyearsbyEUcitizens.

TheEUtracesitsoriginsfromtheEuropeanCoalandSteelCommunity(ECSC)andtheEuropeanEconomicCommunity(EEC),formedbytheInnerSixcountriesin1951and1958,respectively.Intheinterveningyears,thecommunityanditssuccessorshavegrowninsizebytheaccessionofnewmemberstatesandinpowerbytheadditionofpolicyareastoitsremit.TheMaastrichtTreatyestablishedtheEuropeanUnionunderitscurrentnamein1993andintroducedEuropeancitizenship.[16]ThelatestmajoramendmenttotheconstitutionalbasisoftheEU,theTreatyofLisbon,cameintoforcein2009.

TheEUhasdevelopedasinglemarketthroughastandardisedsystemoflawsthatapplyinallmemberstates.WithintheSchengenArea,passportcontrolshavebeenabolished.[17]EUpoliciesaimtoensurethefreemovementofpeople,goods,services,andcapital,[18]enactlegislationinjusticeandhomeaffairs,andmaintaincommonpoliciesontrade,[19]agriculture,[20]fisheries,andregionaldevelopment.[21]

Themonetaryunionwasestablishedin1999andcameintofullforcein2002.Itiscurrentlycomposedof19memberstatesthatusetheeuroastheirlegaltender.ThroughtheCommonForeignandSecurityPolicy,theEUhasdevelopedaroleinexternalrelationsanddefence.TheunionmaintainspermanentdiplomaticmissionsthroughouttheworldandrepresentsitselfattheUnitedNations,theWTO,theG8,andtheG20.

Withacombinedpopulationofover508millioninhabitants,[7]or7.3%oftheworldpopulation,[22]theEUin2014generatedanominalgrossdomesticproduct(GDP)of18.495trillionUSdollars,constitutingapproximately24%ofglobalnominalGDPand17%whenmeasuredintermsofpurchasingpowerparity.Asof2014theEUhasthelargesteconomyintheworld,generatingaGDPbiggerthananyothereconomicunionorcountry.[23]Additionally,26outof28EUcountrieshaveaveryhighHumanDevelopmentIndex,accordingtotheUNDP.In2012,theEUwasawardedtheNobelPeacePrize.[24]

Contents

1History1.1Preliminary1.2TreatyofRomeandgrowth1.3MaastrichtTreatyandafter1.4Structuralevolution

2Geography2.1Memberstates2.2Environment

3Politics3.1Constitutionalnature3.2Governance3.3Budget3.4Competences

4Legalsystem4.1CourtsofJustice

EuropeanUnion

24languages

28states

0:00 MENU

Legislature CounciloftheEUParliament

Formation[6]TreatyofRome 1January1958TreatyofMaastricht 1November1993

AreaTotal 4,324,782km2(7tha)

1,669,808sqmiWater(%) 3.08

Population2015estimate 508,191,116[7](3rda)Density 115.8/km2

300.9/sqmi

GDP(PPP) 2015estimateTotal $19.035trillion[8](1sta)Percapita $37,607[8](19tha)

GDP(nominal) 2015estimateTotal $16.449trillion[8](2nda)Percapita $32,498[9](16tha)

Gini(2010) 30.4[10]medium

HDI(2011) 0.876[11]

veryhigh13th/25tha

CurrencyEuro(EUREurozone)

Timezone WET(UTC)[a]CET(UTC+1)EET(UTC+2)

Summer(DST) WEST(UTC+1)CEST(UTC+2)EEST(UTC+3)

InternetTLD .eu[b]

Websiteeuropa.eu(http://europa.eu)

Ifconsideredasasingleentity.

4.1CourtsofJustice4.2Fundamentalrights4.3Acts

5Areaoffreedom,securityandjustice6Foreignrelations

6.1Military6.2Humanitarianaid

7Economy7.1Internalmarket7.2Competition7.3Monetaryunion7.4Energy7.5Infrastructure7.6Agriculture

8Demographics8.1Languages8.2Religion8.3Educationandscience8.4Healthcare

9Culture9.1Sport9.2Symbols

10Seealso11Notes12References13Furtherreading14Externallinks

History

Mainarticles:HistoryoftheEuropeanUnionandHistoryofEurope

Preliminary

AfterWorldWarII,Europeanintegrationwaseyedasanescapefromtheextremenationalismthathaddevastatedthecontinent.[25]The1948HagueCongresswasapivotalmomentinEuropeanfederalhistory,asitledtothecreationoftheEuropeanMovementInternationalandoftheCollegeofEurope,whereEurope'sfutureleaderswouldliveandstudytogether.[26]1952sawthecreationoftheEuropeanCoalandSteelCommunity,whichwasdeclaredtobe"afirststepinthefederationofEurope.".[27]ThesupportersoftheCommunityincludedAlcideDeGasperi,JeanMonnet,RobertSchuman,andPaulHenriSpaak.[28]

TreatyofRomeandgrowth

In1957,Belgium,France,Italy,Luxembourg,theNetherlands,andWestGermanysignedtheTreatyofRome,whichcreatedtheEuropeanEconomicCommunity(EEC)andestablishedacustomsunion.TheyalsosignedanotherpactcreatingtheEuropeanAtomicEnergyCommunity(Euratom)forcooperationindevelopingnuclearenergy.Bothtreatiescameintoforcein1958.[28]

TheEECandEuratomwerecreatedseparatelyfromECSC,althoughtheysharedthesamecourtsandtheCommonAssembly.TheEECwasheadedbyWalterHallstein(HallsteinCommission)andEuratomwasheadedbyLouisArmand(ArmandCommission)andthentienneHirsch.EuratomwastointegratesectorsinnuclearenergywhiletheEECwoulddevelopacustomsunionamongmembers.[29][30]

10others

a.

RobertSchumanproposingtheCoalandSteelCommunityon9May1950.

ThecontinentalterritoriesofthememberstatesoftheEuropeanUnion(EuropeanCommunitiespre1993),colouredinorderofaccession.

In1989,theIronCurtainfell,enablingtheuniontoexpandfurther(BerlinWallpictured).

Theeurowasintroducedin2002,replacing12nationalcurrencies.Sevencountrieshavesincejoined.

2009,theLisbonTreatyenteredintoforce.

Throughthe1960s,tensionsbegantoshow,withFranceseekingtolimitsupranationalpower.Nevertheless,in1965anagreementwasreachedandon1July1967theMergerTreatycreatedasinglesetofinstitutionsforthethreecommunities,whichwerecollectivelyreferredtoastheEuropeanCommunities.[31][32]JeanReypresidedoverthefirstmergedCommission(ReyCommission).[33]

In1973,theCommunitiesenlargedtoincludeDenmark(includingGreenland,whichlaterlefttheCommunityin1985,followingadisputeoverfishingrights),Ireland,andtheUnitedKingdom.[34]Norwayhadnegotiatedtojoinatthesametime,butNorwegianvotersrejectedmembershipinareferendum.In1979,thefirstdirect,democraticelectionstotheEuropeanParliamentwereheld.[35]

Greecejoinedin1981PortugalandSpainin1986.[36]In1985,theSchengenAgreementledthewaytowardthecreationofopenborderswithoutpassportcontrolsbetweenmostmemberstatesandsomenonmemberstates.[37]In1986,theEuropeanflagbegantobeusedbytheCommunity[38]andtheSingleEuropeanActwassigned.

In1990,afterthefalloftheEasternBloc,theformerEastGermanybecamepartoftheCommunityaspartofareunitedGermany.[39]Withfurtherenlargementplannedforformercommuniststates,Cyprus,andMalta,theCopenhagencriteriaforcandidatememberstojointheEUwereagreeduponinJune1993.

MaastrichtTreatyandafter

TheEuropeanUnionwasformallyestablishedwhentheMaastrichtTreatywhosemainarchitectswereHelmutKohlandFranoisMitterrandcameintoforceon1November1993.[16]ThetreatyalsogavethenameEuropeancommunitytotheEEC,evenifitwasreferredassuchbeforethetreaty.In1995,Austria,Finland,andSwedenjoinedtheEU.In2002,eurobanknotesandcoinsreplacednationalcurrenciesin12ofthememberstates.Sincethen,theeurozonehasincreasedtoencompass19countries.In2004,theEUsawitsbiggestenlargementtodatewhenCyprus,theCzechRepublic,Estonia,Hungary,Latvia,Lithuania,Malta,Poland,Slovakia,andSloveniajoinedtheUnion.[40]

On1January2007,RomaniaandBulgariabecameEUmembers.Inthesameyear,Sloveniaadoptedtheeuro,[40]followedin2008byCyprusandMalta,bySlovakiain2009,byEstoniain2011,byLatviain2014andbyLithuaniain2015.InJune2009,theEuropeanParliamentelectionswereheld,leadingtothesecondBarrosoCommission,andbyJuly,Icelandformally

appliedforEUmembership,buthassincesuspendednegotiations.

On1December2009,theLisbonTreatyenteredintoforceandreformedmanyaspectsoftheEU.Inparticular,itchangedthelegalstructureoftheEuropeanUnion,mergingtheEUthreepillarssystemintoasinglelegalentityprovisionedwithalegalpersonality,createdapermanentPresidentoftheEuropeanCouncil,thefirstofwhichwasHermanVanRompuy,andstrengthenedtheHighRepresentative,CatherineAshton.[41]

In2012theUnionreceivedtheNobelPeacePrizeforhaving"contributedtotheadvancementofpeaceandreconciliation,democracy,andhumanrightsinEurope."[42][43]On1July2013,Croatiabecamethe28thEUmember.[44][45][46]

Structuralevolution

Mainarticle:TreatiesoftheEuropeanUnion

Thefollowingtimelineillustratestheintegrationthathasledtotheformationofthepresentunion,intermsofstructuraldevelopmentdrivenbyinternationaltreaties:

Signed 1948 1951 1954 1957 1965 1975 1985 1986 1992 1997 2001 2007

The65,993km(41,006mi)coastlinedominatestheEuropeanclimate(Cyprus).

MontBlancintheAlpsisthehighestpeakintheunion.

InforceDocument

1948BrusselsTreaty

1952ParisTreaty

1955ModifiedBrusselsTreaty

1958Rometreaties

1967MergerTreaty

N/AEuropeanCouncilconclusion

1985SchengenTreaty

1987SingleEuropeanAct

1993MaastrichtTreaty

1999AmsterdamTreaty

2003NiceTreaty

2009LisbonTreaty

ThreepillarsoftheEuropeanUnion: EuropeanCommunities:

EuropeanAtomicEnergyCommunity(EURATOM) EuropeanCoalandSteelCommunity(ECSC) Treatyexpiredin2002

EuropeanUnion(EU)

EuropeanEconomicCommunity(EEC)

SchengenRules EuropeanCommunity(EC)

TREVI JusticeandHomeAffairs(JHA)

PoliceandJudicialCooperationinCriminalMatters(PJCC)

EuropeanPoliticalCooperation(EPC) CommonForeignandSecurityPolicy(CFSP)

Unconsolidatedbodies WesternEuropeanUnion(WEU)

Treatyterminatedin2011

Geography

Mainarticle:GeographyoftheEuropeanUnion

TheEU'smemberstatescoveranareaof4,423,147squarekilometres(1,707,787sqmi).[c]TheEU'shighestpeakisMontBlancintheGraianAlps,4,810.45metres(15,782ft)abovesealevel.[47]Thelowestpoint(s)intheEUisLammefjorden,DenmarkandZuidplaspolder,Netherlands,at7m(23ft)belowsealevel.[48]Thelandscape,climate,andeconomyoftheEUareinfluencedbyitscoastline,whichis65,993kilometres(41,006mi)long.

IncludingtheoverseasterritoriesofFrancewhicharelocatedoutsidethecontinentofEurope,butwhicharemembersoftheunion,theEUexperiencesmosttypesofclimatefromArctic(NorthEastEurope)totropical(FrenchGuyana),renderingmeteorologicalaveragesfortheEUasawholemeaningless.Themajorityofthepopulationlivesinareaswithatemperatemaritimeclimate(NorthWesternEuropeandCentralEurope),aMediterraneanclimate(SouthernEurope),orawarmsummercontinentalorhemiborealclimate(NorthernBalkansandCentralEurope).[49]

TheEU'spopulationishighlyurbanised,withsome75%ofinhabitants(andgrowing,projectedtobe90%insevenmemberstatesby2020)livinginurbanareas.CitiesarelargelyspreadoutacrosstheEU,althoughwithalargegroupinginandaroundtheBenelux.Anincreasingpercentageofthisisduetolowdensityurbansprawlwhichisextendingintonaturalareas.Insomecases,thisurbangrowthhasbeenduetotheinfluxofEUfundsintoaregion.[50]

Memberstates

Mainarticle:MemberstateoftheEuropeanUnion

Thefollowing28sovereignstates(ofwhichthemaponlyshowsterritoriessituatedinandaroundEurope)constitutetheunion:[51]

Ireland UnitedKingdom

France

NetherlandsGermany

Denmark

Poland

LithuaniaLatviaEstonia

Finland

Sweden

CzechRepublic

Austria Hungary Romania

Bulgaria

Greece

Slovakia

SloveniaCroatia

Italy

BelgiumLuxembourg

Portugal Spain

MaltaCyprus

Name Capital Accession Population[7] Area(km2)Austria Vienna 1January1995 8,584,926 83,855Belgium Brussels Founder 11,258,434 30,528Bulgaria Sofia 1January2007 7,202,198 110,994Croatia Zagreb 1July2013 4,225,316 56,594Cyprus Nicosia 1May2004 847,008 9,251CzechRepublic Prague 1May2004 10,538,275 78,866Denmark Copenhagen 1January1973 5,659,715 43,075Estonia Tallinn 1May2004 1,313,271 45,227Finland Helsinki 1January1995 5,471,753 338,424France Paris Founder 66,352,469 640,679Germany Berlin Founder[d] 81,174,000 357,021Greece Athens 1January1981 10,812,467 131,990Hungary Budapest 1May2004 9,849,000 93,030Ireland Dublin 1January1973 4,625,885 70,273Italy Rome Founder 60,795,612 301,338Latvia Riga 1May2004 1,986,096 64,589Lithuania Vilnius 1May2004 2,921,262 65,200Luxembourg Luxembourg Founder 562,958 2,586Malta Valletta 1May2004 429,344 316Netherlands Amsterdam Founder 16,900,726 41,543Poland Warsaw 1May2004 38,005,614 312,685Portugal Lisbon 1January1986 10,374,822 92,390Romania Bucharest 1January2007 19,861,408 238,391Slovakia Bratislava 1May2004 5,421,349 49,035Slovenia Ljubljana 1May2004 2,062,874 20,273Spain Madrid 1January1986 46,439,864 504,030Sweden Stockholm 1January1995 9,747,355 449,964UnitedKingdom London 1January1973 64,767,115 243,610

Throughsuccessiveenlargements,theUnionhasgrownfromthesixfoundingstatesBelgium,France,WestGermany,Italy,Luxembourg,andtheNetherlandstothecurrent28.Countriesaccedetotheunionbybecomingpartytothefoundingtreaties,therebysubjectingthemselvestotheprivilegesandobligationsofEUmembership.Thisentailsapartialdelegationofsovereigntytotheinstitutionsinreturnforrepresentationwithinthoseinstitutions,apracticeoftenreferredtoas"poolingofsovereignty".[52][53]

Tobecomeamember,acountrymustmeettheCopenhagencriteria,definedatthe1993meetingoftheEuropeanCouncilinCopenhagen.Theserequireastabledemocracythatrespectshumanrightsandtheruleoflawafunctioningmarketeconomyandtheacceptanceoftheobligationsofmembership,includingEUlaw.Evaluationofacountry'sfulfilmentofthecriteriaistheresponsibilityoftheEuropeanCouncil.[54]NomemberstatehaseverlefttheUnion,althoughGreenland(anautonomousprovinceofDenmark)withdrewin1985.[55]TheLisbonTreatynowcontainsaclauseprovidingforamembertoleavetheEU.[56]

MapoftheEuropeanUnionintheworldwithoverseascountriesandterritoriesandoutermostregions.

TheexclusiveeconomiczoneoftheEuropeanUnion. EUmemberstates. TerritoriesunderthesovereigntyofanEUmemberstate. Recognisedcandidatecountries.

ViruBoginLahemaaNationalParkinEstonia,aprotectedhabitatundertheHabitatsDirective

Ablackstork,anAnnexAprotectedspeciesunderRegulation(EC)No.338/97

Therearesixcountrieswhicharerecognizedascandidatesformembership:Albania,Iceland,Macedonia,[e]Montenegro,Serbia,andTurkey.[57]However,on13June2013,Iceland'sForeignMinister,GunnarBragiSveinsson,informedtheEuropeanCommissionthatthenewlyelectedgovernmentintendedto"putnegotiationsonhold".[58]BosniaandHerzegovinaandKosovoareofficiallyrecognisedaspotentialcandidates,[57]buthavenotsubmittedmembershipapplications.Duetothelackofrecognitionbyfiveofthe28EUmemberstates,theEuropeanCommissionrefersonlyto"Kosovo*",withanasteriskedfootnotecontainingthetextagreedtobytheBelgradePristinanegotiations:"Thisdesignationiswithoutprejudicetopositionsonstatus,andisinlinewithUNSCR1244andtheICJOpinionontheKosovoDeclarationofIndependence."

FourcountriesformingtheEuropeanFreeTradeAssociation(EFTA)(thatarenotEUmembers)havepartlycommittedtotheEU'seconomyandregulations:Iceland,LiechtensteinandNorway,whichareapartofthesinglemarketthroughtheEuropeanEconomicArea,andSwitzerland,whichhassimilartiesthroughbilateraltreaties.[59][60]

TherelationshipsoftheEuropeanmicrostates,Andorra,Monaco,SanMarino,andtheVaticanincludetheuseoftheeuroandotherareasofcooperation.[61]

Environment

Furtherinformation:EuropeanCommissionerfortheEnvironmentandEuropeanClimateChangeProgramme

In1957,whentheEUwasfounded,ithadnoenvironmentalpolicy,noenvironmentalbureaucracy,andnoenvironmentallaws.[62]Today,theEUhassomeofthemostprogressiveenvironmentalpoliciesofanystateintheworld.TheenvironmentalpolicyoftheEUhasthereforedevelopedinremarkablefashioninthepastfourdecades.Anincreasinglydensenetworkoflegislationhasemerged,whichnowextendstoallareasofenvironmentalprotection,including:airpollutioncontrol,waterprotection,wastemanagement,natureconservation,andthecontrolofchemicals,biotechnologyandotherindustrialrisks.[63]TheInstituteforEuropeanEnvironmentalPolicyestimatesthebodyofEUenvironmentallawamountstowellover500Directives,RegulationsandDecisions.[64]EnvironmentalpolicyhasthusbecomeacoreareaofEuropeanpolitics.

Suchdynamicdevelopmentsaresurprisinginlightofthelegalandinstitutionalconditionswhichexistedinthelate1950sand60s.[65]Actingwithoutanylegislativeauthority,EuropeanpolicymakersinitiallyincreasedtheEU'scapacitytoactbydefiningenvironmentalpolicyasatradeproblem.ThemostimportantreasonfortheintroductionofacommonenvironmentalpolicywasthefearthattradebarriersandcompetitivedistortionsintheCommonMarketcouldemergeduetothedifferentenvironmentalstandards.[66]However,inthecourseoftime,EUenvironmentalpolicyemergedasaformalpolicyarea,withitsownpolicyactors,policyprinciplesand

procedures.ThelegalbasisofEUenvironmentalpolicywasnotmoreexplicitlyestablisheduntiltheintroductionoftheSingleEuropeanActin1987.[64]

Initially,EUenvironmentalpolicywasratherintrospective.Morerecently,however,theUnionhasdemonstratedagrowingleadershipinglobalenvironmentalgovernance.TheroleoftheEUinsecuringtheratificationandentryintoforceoftheKyotoProtocolinthefaceofUSoppositionisanexampleinthisregard.ThisinternationaldimensionisreflectedintheEU'sSixthEnvironmentalActionProgramme,whichrecognisesthatitsstrategicobjectivescanonlybeachievedifaseriesofkeyinternationalenvironmentalagreementsareactivelysupportedandproperlyimplementedbothatanEUlevelandworldwide.TheentryintoforceoftheLisbonTreatyfurtherstrengthenstheEU'sglobalenvironmentalleadershipambitions.[67]ThevastbodyofEUenvironmentallawwhichnowexistshasplayedavitalroleinimprovinghabitatandspeciesprotectioninEuropeaswellascontributedtoimprovementsinairandwaterqualityandwastemanagement.[64]However,significantchallengesremain,bothtomeetexistingEUtargetsandaspirationsandtoagreenewtargetsandactionsthatwillfurtherimprovetheenvironmentandthequalityoflifeinEuropeandbeyond.

OneofthetopprioritiesofEUenvironmentalpolicyiscombattingclimatechange.In2007,memberstatesagreedthattheEUistouse20%renewableenergyinthefutureandthatithastoreducecarbondioxideemissionsin2020byatleast20%comparedto1990levels.[68]Thisincludesmeasuresthatin2020,10%oftheoverallfuelquantityusedbycarsandtrucksinEU27shouldberunningonrenewableenergysuchasbiofuels.Thisisconsideredtobeoneofthemostambitiousmovesofanimportantindustrialisedregiontofightclimatechange.[69]

TheEUadoptedanemissionstradingsystemtoincorporatecarbonemissionsintotheeconomy.[70]

TheEuropeanGreenCapitalisanannualawardthatisgiventocitiesthatfocusesontheenvironment,energyefficiencyandqualityoflifeinurbanareastocreatesmartcity.

Politics

PoliticalsystemoftheEuropeanUnion

Mainarticle:PoliticsoftheEuropeanUnion

TheEUoperateswithinthosecompetenciesconferredonitbythetreatiesandaccordingtotheprincipleofsubsidiarity(whichdictatesthatactionbytheEUshouldonlybetakenwhereanobjectivecannotbesufficientlyachievedbythememberstatesalone).LawsmadebytheEUinstitutionsarepassedinavarietyofforms.Generallyspeaking,theycanbeclassifiedintotwogroups:thosewhichcomeintoforcewithoutthenecessityfornationalimplementationmeasuresandthosewhichspecificallyrequirenationalimplementationmeasures.[71]

Constitutionalnature

Furtherinformation:TreatiesoftheEuropeanUnion

TheclassificationoftheEuropeanUnionintermsofinternationalorconstitutionallawhasbeenmuchdebated,ofteninthelightofthedegreeofintegrationthatisperceived,desired,orexpected.Historically,atleast,theEUisaninternationalorganisation,andbysomecriteria,itcouldbeclassifiedasaconfederationbutitalsohasmanyattributesofafederation,sosomewouldclassifyitasa(defacto)federationofstates.[72][73][74]Forthisreason,theorganisationhas,inthepast,beentermedsuigeneris(incomparable,oneofakind),thoughitisalsoarguedthatthisdesignationisnolongertrue.[75][76]

Theorganisationitselfhastraditionallyusedtheterms"community",andlater"union".Thedifficultiesofclassificationinvolvethedifferencebetweennationallaw(wherethesubjectsofthelawincludenaturalpersonsandcorporations)andinternationallaw(wherethesubjectsincludesovereignstatesandinternationalorganisations)theycanalsobeseeninthelightofdifferingEuropeanandAmericanconstitutionaltraditions.[75]EspeciallyintermsoftheEuropeanconstitutionaltradition,thetermfederationisequatedwithasovereignfederalstateininternationallawsotheEUcannotbecalledafederalstateorfederationatleast,notwithoutqualification.Thoughnot,strictly,afederation,itismorethanafreetradeassociation.[77]Itis,however,describedasbeingbasedonafederalmodelorfederalinnature.WalterHallstein,intheoriginalGermaneditionofEuropeintheMakingcalledit"anunfinishedfederalstate".[78]TheGermanConstitutionalCourtreferstotheEuropeanUnionasanassociationofsovereignstatesandaffirmsthatmakingtheEUafederationwouldrequirereplacementoftheGermanconstitution.[79]Othersclaimthatitwillnotdevelopintoafederalstatebuthasreachedmaturityasaninternationalorganisation.[80]

Governance

Mainarticles:InstitutionsoftheEuropeanUnionandLegislatureoftheEuropeanUnion

TheEuropeanUnionhasseveninstitutions:theEuropeanParliament,theCounciloftheEuropeanUnion,theEuropeanCommission,theEuropeanCouncil,theEuropeanCentralBank,theCourtofJusticeoftheEuropeanUnionandtheEuropeanCourtofAuditors.CompetenciesinscrutinisingandamendinglegislationaredividedbetweentheEuropeanParliamentandtheCounciloftheEuropeanUnionwhileexecutivetasksarecarriedoutbytheEuropeanCommissionandinalimitedcapacitybytheEuropeanCouncil(nottobeconfusedwiththeaforementionedCounciloftheEuropeanUnion).ThemonetarypolicyoftheeurozoneisgovernedbytheEuropeanCentralBank.TheinterpretationandtheapplicationofEUlawandthetreatiesareensuredbytheCourtofJusticeoftheEuropeanUnion.TheEUbudgetisscrutinisedbytheEuropeanCourtofAuditors.TherearealsoanumberofancillarybodieswhichadvisetheEUoroperateinaspecificarea.

EuropeanCouncil

TheEuropeanCouncilgivesdirectiontotheEU,andconvenesatleastfourtimesayear.ItcomprisesthePresidentoftheEuropeanCouncil,thePresidentoftheEuropeanCommissionandonerepresentativepermemberstateeitheritsheadofstateorheadofgovernment.TheEuropeanCouncilhasbeendescribedbysomeastheUnion's"supremepoliticalauthority".[81]ItisactivelyinvolvedinthenegotiationofthetreatychangesanddefinestheEU'spolicyagendaandstrategies.

TheEuropeanCouncilusesitsleadershiproletosortoutdisputesbetweenmemberstatesandtheinstitutions,andtoresolvepoliticalcrisesanddisagreementsovercontroversialissuesandpolicies.Itactsexternallyasa"collectiveheadofstate"andratifiesimportantdocuments(forexample,internationalagreementsandtreaties).[82]

On19November2009,HermanVanRompuywaschosenasthefirstpermanentPresidentoftheEuropeanCouncil.On1December2009,theTreatyofLisbonenteredintoforceandheassumedoffice.EnsuringtheexternalrepresentationoftheEU,[83]drivingconsensusandsettlingdivergencesamongmembersaretasksforthePresidentbothduringtheconvocationsoftheEuropeanCouncilandinthetimeperiodsbetweenthem.TheEuropeanCouncilshouldnotbemistakenfortheCouncilofEurope,aninternationalorganisationindependentfromtheEU.

ThePresidentoftheEuropeanCouncil,DonaldTusk

TheCommissionPresident,JeanClaudeJuncker

ThehemicycleoftheEuropeanParliamentinStrasbourg

EuropeanCommission

TheEuropeanCommissionactsastheEU'sexecutivearmandisresponsibleforinitiatinglegislationandthedaytodayrunningoftheEU.TheCommissionisalsoseenasthemotorofEuropeanintegration.Itoperatesasacabinetgovernment,with28Commissionersfordifferentareasofpolicy,onefromeachmemberstate,thoughCommissionersareboundtorepresenttheinterestsoftheEUasawholeratherthantheirhomestate.

Oneofthe28istheCommissionPresident(currentlyJeanClaudeJuncker)appointedbytheEuropeanCouncil.AfterthePresident,themostprominentCommissioneristheHighRepresentativeoftheUnionforForeignAffairsandSecurityPolicywhoisexofficioVicePresidentoftheCommissionandischosenbytheEuropeanCounciltoo.[84]Theother26CommissionersaresubsequentlyappointedbytheCounciloftheEuropeanUnion(alsoknownastheCouncilofMinisters)inagreementwiththenominatedPresident.The28CommissionersasasinglebodyaresubjecttoavoteofapprovalbytheEuropeanParliament.

EuropeanParliament

TheEuropeanParliamentformsonehalfoftheEU'slegislature(theotherhalfistheCounciloftheEuropeanUnion).The751MembersoftheEuropeanParliament(MEPs)aredirectlyelectedbyEUcitizenseveryfiveyearsonthebasisofproportionalrepresentation.AlthoughMEPsareelectedonanationalbasis,theysitaccordingtopoliticalgroupsratherthantheirnationality.Eachcountryhasasetnumberofseatsandisdividedintosubnationalconstituencieswherethisdoesnotaffecttheproportionalnatureofthevotingsystem.[85]

TheParliamentandtheCounciloftheEuropeanUnionpasslegislationjointlyinnearlyallareasundertheordinarylegislativeprocedure.ThisalsoappliestotheEUbudget.Finally,theCommissionisaccountabletoParliament,requiringitsapprovaltotakeoffice,havingtoreportbacktoitandsubjecttomotionsofcensurefromit.ThePresidentoftheEuropeanParliamentcarriesouttheroleofspeakerinparliamentandrepresentsitexternally.TheEPPresidentandVicePresidentsareelectedbyMEPseverytwoandahalfyears.[86]

CounciloftheEuropeanUnion

The2011EUbudget(141.9bn.intotalcommitmentappropriations):[90]

Cohesionandcompetitivenessforgrowthandemployment(45%) Citizenship,freedom,

securityandjustice(1%) TheEUasaglobalpartner

(6%) Ruraldevelopment(11%)

Directaidsandmarketrelatedexpenditures(31%) Administration(6%)

TheCounciloftheEuropeanUnion(alsocalledthe"Council"[87]andsometimesreferredtoasthe"CouncilofMinisters")[88]formstheotherhalfoftheEU'slegislature.Itconsistsofagovernmentministerfromeachmemberstateandmeetsindifferentcompositionsdependingonthepolicyareabeingaddressed.Notwithstandingitsdifferentconfigurations,itisconsideredtobeonesinglebody.[89]Inadditiontoitslegislativefunctions,theCouncilalsoexercisesexecutivefunctionsinrelationstotheCommonForeignandSecurityPolicy.

Budget

Mainarticle:BudgetoftheEuropeanUnion

TheEUhadanagreedbudgetof120.7billionfortheyear2007and864.3billionfortheperiod20072013,[91]representing1.10%and1.05%oftheEU27'sGNIforecastfortherespectiveperiods.Bycomparison,theUnitedKingdom'sexpenditurefor2004wasestimatedtobe759billion,andFrancewasestimatedtohavespent801billion.In1960,thebudgetofthethenEuropeanEconomicCommunitywas0.03%ofGDP.[92]

Inthe2010budgetof141.5billion,thelargestsingleexpenditureitemis"cohesion&competitiveness"witharound45%ofthetotalbudget.[93]Nextcomes"agriculture"withapproximately31%ofthetotal.[93]"Ruraldevelopment,environmentandfisheries"takesuparound11%.[93]"Administration"accountsforaround6%.[93]The"EUasaglobalpartner"and"citizenship,freedom,securityandjustice"bringuptherearwithapproximately6%and1%respectively.[93]

TheCourtofAuditorsaimstoensurethatthebudgetoftheEuropeanUnionhasbeenproperlyaccountedfor.ThecourtprovidesanauditreportforeachfinancialyeartotheCouncilandtheEuropeanParliament.TheParliamentusesthistodecidewhethertoapprovetheCommission'shandlingofthebudget.TheCourtalsogivesopinionsandproposalsonfinanciallegislationandantifraudactions.[94]

TheCourtofAuditorsislegallyobligedtoprovidetheParliamentandtheCouncilwith"astatementofassuranceastothereliabilityoftheaccountsandthelegalityandregularityoftheunderlyingtransactions".[95]TheCourthasrefusedtodosoeveryyearsince1993,qualifyingtheirreportoftheUnion'saccountseveryyearsincethen.[96]Intheirreporton2009theauditorsfoundthatfiveareasofUnionexpenditure,agricultureandthecohesionfund,weremateriallyaffectedbyerror.[97]TheEuropeanCommissionestimatedthatthefinancialimpactofirregularitieswas1,863million.[98]

Competences

EUmemberstatesretainallpowersnotexplicitlyhandedtotheEuropeanUnion.InsomeareastheEUenjoysexclusivecompetence.Theseareareasinwhichmemberstateshaverenouncedanycapacitytoenactlegislation.InotherareastheEUanditsmemberstatessharethecompetencetolegislate.Whilebothcanlegislate,memberstatescanonlylegislatetotheextenttowhichtheEUhasnot.InotherpolicyareastheEUcanonlycoordinate,supportandsupplementmemberstateactionbutcannotenactlegislationwiththeaimofharmonisingnationallaws.[99]

Thataparticularpolicyareafallsintoacertaincategoryofcompetenceisnotnecessarilyindicativeofwhatlegislativeprocedureisusedforenactinglegislationwithinthatpolicyarea.Differentlegislativeproceduresareusedwithinthesamecategoryofcompetence,andevenwiththesamepolicyarea.

ThedistributionofcompetencesinvariouspolicyareasbetweenMemberStatesandtheUnionisdividedinthefollowingthreecategories:

AsoutlinedinTitleIofPartIoftheconsolidatedTreatyontheFunctioningoftheEuropeanUnion

Exclusivecompetence Sharedcompetence Supportingcompetence

"TheUnionhasexclusivecompetencetomakedirectivesandconcludeinternationalagreementswhenprovidedforina

Unionlegislativeact."

thecustomsuniontheestablishingofthecompetitionrulesnecessaryfor

"MemberStatescannotexercisecompetenceinareaswheretheUnionhasdoneso."

theinternalmarketsocialpolicy,fortheaspectsdefinedinthisTreatyeconomic,socialandterritorialcohesion

"UnionexerciseofcompetenceshallnotresultinMemberStatesbeingpreventedfromexercisingtheirsin"

research,technologicaldevelopmentand(outer)spacedevelopmentcooperation,humanitarianaid

"TheUnioncancarryoutactionstosupport,coordinateorsupplementMemberStates'actionsin"

theprotectionandimprovementofhumanhealthindustryculture

TheCourtofJustice,seatedinLuxembourg.

thefunctioningoftheinternalmarketmonetarypolicyfortheMemberStateswhosecurrencyistheeurotheconservationofmarinebiologicalresourcesunderthecommonfisheriespolicycommoncommercialpolicyconclusionofcertaininternationalagreements

agricultureandfisheries,excludingtheconservationofmarinebiologicalresourcesenvironmentconsumerprotectiontransporttransEuropeannetworksenergytheareaoffreedom,securityandjusticecommonsafetyconcernsinpublichealthmatters,fortheaspectsdefinedinthisTreaty

"TheUnioncoordinatesMemberStatespoliciesorimplementssupplementaltotheirscommonpolicies,not

coveredelsewhere"

coordinationofeconomic,employmentandsocialpoliciescommonforeign,securityanddefencepolicies

tourismeducation,youth,sportandvocationaltrainingcivilprotection(disasterprevention)administrativecooperation

Legalsystem

Furtherinformation:EuropeanUnionlaw,TreatiesoftheEuropeanUnionandCharterofFundamentalRightsoftheEuropeanUnion

TheEUisbasedonaseriesoftreaties.ThesefirstestablishedtheEuropeanCommunityandtheEU,andthenmadeamendmentstothosefoundingtreaties.[100]Thesearepowergivingtreatieswhichsetbroadpolicygoalsandestablishinstitutionswiththenecessarylegalpowerstoimplementthosegoals.Theselegalpowersincludetheabilitytoenactlegislation[f]whichcandirectlyaffectallmemberstatesandtheirinhabitants.[g]TheEUhaslegalpersonality,withtherighttosignagreementsandinternationaltreaties.[101]

Undertheprincipleofsupremacy,nationalcourtsarerequiredtoenforcethetreatiesthattheirmemberstateshaveratified,andthusthelawsenactedunderthem,evenifdoingsorequiresthemtoignoreconflictingnationallaw,and(withinlimits)evenconstitutionalprovisions.[h]

CourtsofJustice

ThejudicialbranchoftheEUformallycalledtheCourtofJusticeoftheEuropeanUnionconsistsofthreecourts:theCourtofJustice,theGeneralCourt,andtheEuropeanUnionCivilServiceTribunal.TogethertheyinterpretandapplythetreatiesandthelawoftheEU.[102]

TheCourtofJusticeprimarilydealswithcasestakenbymemberstates,theinstitutions,andcasesreferredtoitbythecourtsofmemberstates.[103]TheGeneralCourtmainlydealswithcasestakenbyindividualsandcompaniesdirectlybeforetheEU'scourts,[104]andtheEuropeanUnionCivilServiceTribunaladjudicatesindisputesbetweentheEuropeanUnionanditscivilservice.[105]DecisionsfromtheGeneralCourtcanbeappealedtotheCourtofJusticebutonlyonapointoflaw.[106]

Fundamentalrights

ThetreatiesdeclarethattheEUitselfis"foundedonthevaluesofrespectforhumandignity,freedom,democracy,equality,theruleoflawandrespectforhumanrights,includingtherightsofpersonsbelongingtominorities...inasocietyinwhichpluralism,nondiscrimination,tolerance,justice,solidarityandequalitybetweenwomenandmenprevail."[107]

In2009theLisbonTreatygavelegaleffecttotheCharterofFundamentalRightsoftheEuropeanUnion.ThecharterisacodifiedcatalogueoffundamentalrightsagainstwhichtheEU'slegalactscanbejudged.ItconsolidatesmanyrightswhichwerepreviouslyrecognisedbytheCourtofJusticeandderivedfromthe"constitutionaltraditionscommontothememberstates."[108]TheCourtofJusticehaslongrecognisedfundamentalrightsandhas,onoccasion,invalidatedEUlegislationbasedonitsfailuretoadheretothosefundamentalrights.[109]TheCharterofFundamentalRightswasdrawnupin2000.AlthoughoriginallynotlegallybindingtheCharterwasfrequentlycitedbytheEU'scourtsasencapsulatingrightswhichthecourtshadlongrecognisedasthefundamentalprinciplesofEUlaw.AlthoughsigningtheEuropeanConventiononHumanRights(ECHR)isaconditionforEUmembership,[i]previously,theEUitselfcouldnotaccedetotheConventionasitisneitherastate[j]norhadthecompetencetoaccede.[k]TheLisbonTreatyandProtocol14totheECHRhavechangedthis:theformerbindstheEUtoaccedetotheConventionwhilethelatterformallypermitsit.

Theawardingceremonyofthe1990SakharovPrizeawardedtoAungSanSuuKyi(herebyMartinSchulz)insidetheParliament'sStrasbourghemicycle,in2013.

ThebordersinsidetheSchengenAreabetweenGermanyandAustria

Although,theEUisindependentfromCouncilofEurope,theysharepurposeandideasespeciallyonruleoflaw,humanrightsanddemocracy.FurtherEuropeanConventiononHumanRightsandEuropeanSocialCharter,thesourceoflawofCharterofFundamentalRightsarecreatedbyCouncilofEurope.TheEUalsopromotedhumanrightsissuesinthewiderworld.TheEUopposesthedeathpenaltyandhasproposeditsworldwideabolition.AbolitionofthedeathpenaltyisaconditionforEUmembership.[110]

Acts

ThemainlegalactsoftheEUcomeinthreeforms:regulations,directives,anddecisions.Regulationsbecomelawinallmemberstatesthemomenttheycomeintoforce,withouttherequirementforanyimplementingmeasures,[l]andautomaticallyoverrideconflictingdomesticprovisions.[f]Directivesrequirememberstatestoachieveacertainresultwhileleavingthemdiscretionastohowtoachievetheresult.Thedetailsofhowtheyaretobeimplementedarelefttomemberstates.[m]Whenthetimelimitforimplementingdirectivespasses,theymay,undercertainconditions,havedirecteffectinnationallawagainstmemberstates.

Decisionsofferanalternativetothetwoabovemodesoflegislation.Theyarelegalactswhichonlyapplytospecifiedindividuals,companiesoraparticularmemberstate.Theyaremostoftenusedincompetitionlaw,oronrulingsonStateAid,butarealsofrequentlyusedforproceduraloradministrativematterswithintheinstitutions.Regulations,directives,anddecisionsareofequallegalvalueandapplywithoutanyformalhierarchy.[111]

Areaoffreedom,securityandjustice

Furtherinformation:Areaoffreedom,securityandjustice

SincethecreationoftheEUin1993,ithasdevelopeditscompetenciesintheareaoffreedom,securityandjustice,initiallyatanintergovernmentallevelandlaterbysupranationalism.Tothisend,agencieshavebeenestablishedthatcoordinateassociatedactions:Europolforcooperationofpoliceforces,[112]Eurojustforcooperationbetweenprosecutors,[113]andFrontexforcooperationbetweenbordercontrolauthorities.[114]TheEUalsooperatestheSchengenInformationSystem[17]whichprovidesacommondatabaseforpoliceandimmigrationauthorities.ThiscooperationhadtoparticularlybedevelopedwiththeadventofopenbordersthroughtheSchengenAgreementandtheassociatedcrossbordercrime.

Furthermore,theUnionhaslegislatedinareassuchasextradition,[115]familylaw,[116]asylumlaw,[117]andcriminaljustice.[118]Prohibitionsagainstsexualandnationalitydiscriminationhavealongstandinginthetreaties.[n]Inmorerecentyears,thesehavebeensupplementedbypowerstolegislateagainstdiscriminationbasedonrace,religion,disability,age,andsexualorientation.[o]Byvirtueofthesepowers,theEUhasenactedlegislationonsexualdiscriminationintheworkplace,agediscrimination,andracialdiscrimination.[p]

Foreignrelations

Mainarticles:ForeignrelationsoftheEuropeanUnion,CommonForeignandSecurityPolicyandEuropeanExternalActionService

ForeignpolicycooperationbetweenmemberstatesdatesfromtheestablishmentoftheCommunityin1957,whenmemberstatesnegotiatedasablocininternationaltradenegotiationsundertheCommonCommercialpolicy.[119]Stepsforamorewiderangingcoordinationinforeignrelationsbeganin1970withtheestablishmentofEuropeanPoliticalCooperationwhichcreatedaninformalconsultationprocessbetweenmemberstateswiththeaimofformingcommonforeignpolicies.Itwasnot,however,until1987whenEuropeanPoliticalCooperationwasintroducedonaformalbasisbytheSingleEuropeanAct.EPCwasrenamedastheCommonForeignandSecurityPolicy(CFSP)bytheMaastrichtTreaty.[120]

TheaimsoftheCFSParetopromoteboththeEU'sowninterestsandthoseoftheinternationalcommunityasawhole,includingthefurtheranceofinternationalcooperation,respectforhumanrights,democracy,andtheruleoflaw.[121]TheCFSPrequiresunanimityamongthememberstatesontheappropriatepolicytofollowonanyparticularissue.TheunanimityanddifficultissuestreatedundertheCFSPsometimesleadtodisagreements,suchasthosewhichoccurredoverthewarinIraq.[122]

ThecoordinatorandrepresentativeoftheCFSPwithintheEUistheHighRepresentativeoftheUnionforForeignAffairsandSecurityPolicy(currentlyFedericaMogherini)whospeaksonbehalfoftheEUinforeignpolicyanddefencematters,andhasthetaskofarticulatingthepositionsexpressedbythememberstatesonthesefieldsofpolicyintoacommonalignment.TheHighRepresentativeheadsuptheEuropeanExternalActionService(EEAS),auniqueEUdepartment[123]thathasbeenofficiallyimplementedandoperationalsince1December2010ontheoccasionofthefirstanniversaryoftheentryintoforceoftheTreatyofLisbon.[124]TheEEASwillserveasaforeignministryanddiplomaticcorpsfortheEuropeanUnion.[125]

TheHighRepresentativeoftheUnionforForeignAffairsandSecurityPolicy,FedericaMogherini.

TheEUparticipatesinallG8andG20summits.(G20summitinSeoul)

NATOSummit2006inRiga,Latvia.

AnA400MmilitarytransportaircraftbuiltbyAirbusGroupSE(societasEuropaeaLatin:Europeancompany)

Collectively,theEUisthelargestcontributorofforeignaidintheworld.[139][140]

BesidestheemerginginternationalpolicyoftheEuropeanUnion,theinternationalinfluenceoftheEUisalsofeltthroughenlargement.TheperceivedbenefitsofbecomingamemberoftheEUactasanincentiveforbothpoliticalandeconomicreforminstateswishingtofulfiltheEU'saccessioncriteria,andareconsideredanimportantfactorcontributingtothereformofEuropeanformerlyCommunistcountries.[126]Thisinfluenceontheinternalaffairsofothercountriesisgenerallyreferredtoas"softpower",asopposedtomilitary"hardpower".[127]

Military

Mainarticle:MilitaryoftheEuropeanUnion

TheEuropeanUniondoesnothaveoneunifiedmilitary.ThepredecessorsoftheEuropeanUnionwerenotdevisedasastrongmilitaryalliancebecauseNATOwaslargelyseenasappropriateandsufficientfordefencepurposes.[128]22EUmembersaremembersofNATO[129]whiletheremainingmemberstatesfollowpoliciesofneutrality.[130]TheWesternEuropeanUnion,amilitaryalliancewithamutualdefenceclause,wasdisbandedin2010asitsrolehadbeentransferredtotheEU.[131]

AccordingtotheStockholmInternationalPeaceResearchInstitute(SIPRI),Francespentmorethan44billion($59bn)ondefencein2010,placingitthirdintheworldaftertheUSandChina,whiletheUnitedKingdomspentalmost38billion($58bn),thefourthlargest.[132]Together,FranceandtheUnitedKingdomaccountfor45percentofEurope'sdefencebudget,50percentofitsmilitary

capacityand70percentofallspendinginmilitaryresearchanddevelopment.[133]BritainandFrancearealsoofficiallyrecognisednuclearweaponstatesandaretheonlytwoEuropeannationstoholdpermanentseatsontheUnitedNationsSecurityCouncil.In2000,theUnitedKingdom,France,Spain,andGermanyaccountedfor97%ofthetotalmilitaryresearchbudgetofthethen15EUmemberstates.[134]

FollowingtheKosovoWarin1999,theEuropeanCouncilagreedthat"theUnionmusthavethecapacityforautonomousaction,backedbycrediblemilitaryforces,themeanstodecidetousethem,andthereadinesstodoso,inordertorespondtointernationalcriseswithoutprejudicetoactionsbyNATO".Tothatend,anumberofeffortsweremadetoincreasetheEU'smilitarycapability,notablytheHelsinkiHeadlineGoalprocess.Aftermuchdiscussion,themostconcreteresultwastheEUBattlegroupsinitiative,eachofwhichisplannedtobeabletodeployquicklyabout1500personnel.[135]

EUforceshavebeendeployedonpeacekeepingmissionsfrommiddleandnorthernAfricatothewesternBalkansandwesternAsia.[136]EUmilitaryoperationsaresupportedbyanumberofbodies,includingtheEuropeanDefenceAgency,EuropeanUnionSatelliteCentreandtheEuropeanUnionMilitaryStaff.[137]InanEUconsistingof28members,substantialsecurityanddefencecooperationisincreasinglyrelyingoncooperationofthegreatpowers.[138]

Humanitarianaid

Furtherinformation:ECHO(EuropeanCommission)

TheEuropeanCommission'sHumanitarianAidandCivilProtectiondepartment,or"ECHO",provideshumanitarianaidfromtheEUtodevelopingcountries.In2012,itsbudgetamountedto874million,51%ofthebudgetwenttoAfricaand20%toAsia,LatinAmerica,theCaribbeanandPacific,and20%totheMiddleEastandMediterranean.[141]

Humanitarianaidisfinanceddirectlybythebudget(70%)aspartofthefinancialinstrumentsforexternalactionandalsobytheEuropeanDevelopmentFund(30%).[142]TheEU'sexternalactionfinancingisdividedinto'geographic'instrumentsand'thematic'instruments.[142]The'geographic'instrumentsprovideaidthroughtheDevelopmentCooperationInstrument(DCI,16.9billion,20072013),whichmustspend95%ofitsbudgetonoverseasdevelopmentassistance(ODA),andfromtheEuropeanNeighbourhoodandPartnershipInstrument(ENPI),whichcontainssomerelevantprogrammes.[142]TheEuropeanDevelopmentFund(EDF,22.7bn,20082013)ismadeupofvoluntarycontributionsbymemberstates,butthereispressuretomergetheEDFintothebudgetfinancedinstrumentstoencourageincreasedcontributionstomatchthe0.7%targetandallowtheEuropeanParliamentgreateroversight.[142]

However,fivecountrieshavereachedthe0.7%target:Sweden,Luxembourg,theNetherlands,DenmarkandtheUnitedKingdom.[143][144]In2011,EUaidwas0.42%oftheEU'sGNImakingittheworld'smostgenerousaiddonor.[145]ThepreviousCommissionerforAid,LouisMichel,hascalledforaidtobedeliveredmorerapidly,togreatereffect,andonhumanitarianprinciples.[146]

ThefivelargesteconomiesintheworldaccordingtotheIMFbyGDPin2011.[147]

GDP(inPPS)perinhabitantbyNUTS2regionsin2009.

Economy

Mainarticles:EconomyoftheEuropeanUnionandRegionalpolicyoftheEuropeanUnion

TheEUhasestablishedasinglemarketacrosstheterritoryofallitsmembers.19memberstateshavealsojoinedamonetaryunionknownastheeurozone,whichusestheEuroasasinglecurrency.[148]In2012,theEUhadacombinedGDPof16.073trillionsinternationaldollars,a20%shareoftheglobalgrossdomesticproduct(intermsofpurchasingpowerparity).[149]AccordingtoCreditSuisseGlobalWealthReport2012,theEUownsthelargestnetwealthintheworlditisestimatedtoequal30%ofthe$223trillionglobalwealth.

Ofthetop500largestcorporationsmeasuredbyrevenue(FortuneGlobal500in2010),161havetheirheadquartersintheEU.[150]In2007,unemploymentintheEUstoodat7%[151]whileinvestmentwasat21.4%ofGDP,inflationat2.2%,andcurrentaccountbalanceat0.9%ofGDP(i.e.,slightlymoreimportthanexport).In2012,unemploymentintheEUstood,perAugust2012,at11.4%[151]

ThereisasignificantvarianceforGDP(PPP)percapitawithinindividualEUstates,theserangefrom11,300to69,800(aboutUS$15,700toUS$97,000).[152]Thedifferencebetweentherichestandpoorestregions(271NUTS2regionsoftheNomenclatureofTerritorialUnitsforStatistics)ranged,in2009,from27%oftheEU27averageintheregionofSeverozapadeninBulgaria,to332%oftheaverageinInnerLondonintheUnitedKingdom.Onthehighend,InnerLondonhas78,000PPPpercapita,Luxembourg62,500,andBruxellesCap52,500,whilethepoorestregions,areSeverozapadenwith6,400PPPpercapita,NordEstwith6,900PPPpercapita,Severentsentralenwith6,900andYuzhentsentralenwith7,200.[152]

StructuralFundsandCohesionFundsaresupportingthedevelopmentofunderdevelopedregionsoftheEU.SuchregionsareprimarilylocatedinthestatesofcentralandsouthernEurope.[153][154]Severalfundsprovideemergencyaid,supportforcandidatememberstotransformtheircountrytoconformtotheEU'sstandard(Phare,ISPA,andSAPARD),andsupporttotheformerUSSRCommonwealthofIndependentStates(TACIS).TACIShasnowbecomepartoftheworldwideEuropeAidprogramme.EUresearchandtechnologicalframeworkprogrammessponsorresearchconductedbyconsortiafromallEUmemberstoworktowardsasingleEuropeanResearchArea.[155]

Internalmarket

Mainarticle:Internalmarket

TwooftheoriginalcoreobjectivesoftheEuropeanEconomicCommunitywerethedevelopmentofacommonmarket,subsequentlyrenamedthesinglemarket,andacustomsunionbetweenitsmemberstates.Thesinglemarketinvolvesthefreecirculationofgoods,capital,people,andserviceswithintheEU,[148]andthecustomsunioninvolvestheapplicationofacommonexternaltariffonallgoodsenteringthemarket.Oncegoodshavebeenadmittedintothemarkettheycannotbesubjectedtocustomsduties,discriminatorytaxesorimportquotas,astheytravelinternally.ThenonEUmemberstatesofIceland,Norway,LiechtensteinandSwitzerlandparticipateinthesinglemarketbutnotinthecustomsunion.[59]HalfthetradeintheEUiscoveredbylegislationharmonisedbytheEU.[156]

Freemovementofcapitalisintendedtopermitmovementofinvestmentssuchaspropertypurchasesandbuyingofsharesbetweencountries.[157]Untilthedrivetowardseconomicandmonetaryunionthedevelopmentofthecapitalprovisionshadbeenslow.PostMaastrichttherehasbeenarapidlydevelopingcorpusofECJjudgementsregardingthisinitiallyneglectedfreedom.Thefreemovementofcapitalisuniqueinsofarasitisgrantedequallytononmemberstates.

ThefreemovementofpersonsmeansthatEUcitizenscanmovefreelybetweenmemberstatestolive,work,studyorretireinanothercountry.Thisrequiredtheloweringofadministrativeformalitiesandrecognitionofprofessionalqualificationsofotherstates.[158]

Thefreemovementofservicesandofestablishmentallowsselfemployedpersonstomovebetweenmemberstatestoprovideservicesonatemporaryorpermanentbasis.Whileservicesaccountfor6070%ofGDP,legislationintheareaisnotasdevelopedasinotherareas.ThislacunahasbeenaddressedbytherecentlypassedDirectiveonservicesintheinternalmarketwhichaimstoliberalisethecrossborderprovisionofservices.[159]AccordingtotheTreatytheprovisionofservicesisaresidualfreedomthatonlyappliesifnootherfreedomisbeingexercised.

Competition

Astandardisedpassportdesign,displayingthenameofthememberstate,thenationalarmsandthewords"EuropeanUnion"givenintheirofficiallanguage(s).(Irishmodel)

TheseatoftheCentralBankinFrankfurt.19ofthe28memberstatesoftheunionhaveadoptedtheeuroastheirlegaltender.

Furtherinformation:EuropeanUnioncompetitionlawandEuropeanCommissionerforCompetition

TheEUoperatesacompetitionpolicyintendedtoensureundistortedcompetitionwithinthesinglemarket.[q]TheCommissionasthecompetitionregulatorforthesinglemarketisresponsibleforantitrustissues,approvingmergers,breakingupcartels,workingforeconomicliberalisationandpreventingstateaid.[160]

TheCompetitionCommissioner,currentlyJoaqunAlmunia,isoneofthemostpowerfulpositionsintheCommission,notablefortheabilitytoaffectthecommercialinterestsoftransnationalcorporations.[161]Forexample,in2001theCommissionforthefirsttimepreventedamergerbetweentwocompaniesbasedintheUnitedStates(GEandHoneywell)whichhadalreadybeenapprovedbytheirnationalauthority.[162]AnotherhighprofilecaseagainstMicrosoft,resultedintheCommissionfiningMicrosoftover777millionfollowingnineyearsoflegalaction.[163]

Monetaryunion

Mainarticles:EurozoneandEconomicandMonetaryUnionoftheEuropeanUnion

ThecreationofaEuropeansinglecurrencybecameanofficialobjectiveoftheEuropeanEconomicCommunityin1969.In1992,afterhavingnegotiatedthestructureandproceduresofacurrencyunion,thememberstatessignedtheMaastrichtTreatyandwerelegallyboundtofulfilltheagreedonrulesincludingtheconvergencecriteriaiftheywantedtojointhemonetaryunion.ThestateswantingtoparticipatehadfirsttojointheEuropeanExchangeRateMechanism.

In1999thecurrencyunionstarted,firstasanaccountingcurrencywithelevenmemberstatesjoining.In2002,thecurrencywasfullyputintoplace,wheneuronotesandcoinswereissuedandnationalcurrenciesbegantophaseoutintheeurozone,whichbythenconsistedof12memberstates.Theeurozone(constitutedbytheEUmemberstateswhichhaveadoptedtheeuro)hassincegrownto19countries,themostrecentbeingLithuaniawhichjoinedon1January2015.Denmark,theUnitedKingdom,andSwedendecidednottojointheeuro.[164][r]

Sinceitslaunchtheeurohasbecomethesecondreservecurrencyintheworldwithaquarterofforeignexchangesreservesbeingineuro.[165]Theeuro,andthemonetarypoliciesofthosewhohaveadopteditinagreementwiththeEU,areunderthecontroloftheEuropeanCentralBank(ECB).[166]

TheECBisthecentralbankfortheeurozone,andthuscontrolsmonetarypolicyinthatareawithanagendatomaintainpricestability.ItisatthecentreoftheEuropeanSystemofCentralBanks,whichcomprehendsallEUnationalcentralbanksandiscontrolledbyitsGeneralCouncil,consistingofthePresidentoftheECB,whoisappointedbytheEuropeanCouncil,theVicePresidentoftheECB,andthegovernorsofthenationalcentralbanksofall28EUmemberstates.[167]

TheEuropeanSystemofFinancialSupervisionisaninstitutionalarchitectureoftheEU'sframeworkoffinancialsupervisioncomposedbythreeauthorities:theEuropeanBankingAuthority,theEuropeanInsuranceandOccupationalPensionsAuthorityandtheEuropeanSecuritiesandMarketsAuthority.Tocomplementthisframework,thereisalsoaEuropeanSystemicRiskBoardundertheresponsibilityoftheECB.TheaimofthisfinancialcontrolsystemistoensuretheeconomicstabilityoftheEU.[168]

Topreventthejoiningstatesfromgettingintofinancialtroubleorcrisisafterenteringthemonetaryunion,theywereobligedintheMaastrichttreatytofulfillimportantfinancialobligationsandprocedures,especiallytoshowbudgetarydisciplineandahighdegreeofsustainableeconomicconvergence,aswellastoavoidexcessivegovernmentdeficitsandlimitthegovernmentdebttoasustainablelevel.

Somestatesjoinedtheeurobutviolatedtheserulesandcontractstoanextentthattheyslidintoadebtcrisisandhadtobefinanciallysupportedwithemergencyrescuefunds.ThesestateswereGreece,Ireland,Portugal,CyprusandSpain.

EventhoughtheMaastrichttreatyforbidseurozonestatestoassumethedebtsofotherstates("bailout"),variousemergencyrescuefundshadbeencreatedbythememberstosupportthedebtcrisisstatestomeettheirfinancialobligationsandbuytimeforreformsthatthosestatescangainbacktheircompetitiveness.

Energy

Mainarticle:EnergypolicyoftheEuropeanUnion

Consumedenergy(2012)[169]

Renewable(dom.prod.)(7%) Nuclear[s](dom.prod.)

(13%) Coalandlignite(dom.prod.)

(10%) Gas(dom.prod.)(9%)

Gas(import)(14%)

Oil(dom.prod.)(6%)

Oil(import)(33%)

Other(dom.prod.)(1%)

Other(import)(7%)TheresundBridgebetweenDenmarkandSwedenispartoftheTransEuropeanNetworks.

In2006,theEU27hadagrossinlandenergyconsumptionof1,825milliontonnesofoilequivalent(toe).[170]Around46%oftheenergyconsumedwasproducedwithinthememberstateswhile54%wasimported.[170]Inthesestatistics,nuclearenergyistreatedasprimaryenergyproducedintheEU,regardlessofthesourceoftheuranium,ofwhichlessthan3%isproducedintheEU.[171]

TheEUhashadlegislativepowerintheareaofenergypolicyformostofitsexistencethishasitsrootsintheoriginalEuropeanCoalandSteelCommunity.TheintroductionofamandatoryandcomprehensiveEuropeanenergypolicywasapprovedatthemeetingoftheEuropeanCouncilinOctober2005,andthefirstdraftpolicywaspublishedinJanuary2007.[172]

TheEUhasfivekeypointsinitsenergypolicy:increasecompetitionintheinternalmarket,encourageinvestmentandboostinterconnectionsbetweenelectricitygridsdiversifyenergyresourceswithbettersystemstorespondtoacrisisestablishanewtreatyframeworkforenergycooperationwithRussiawhileimprovingrelationswithenergyrichstatesinCentralAsia[173]

andNorthAfricauseexistingenergysuppliesmoreefficientlywhileincreasingrenewableenergycommercialisationandfinallyincreasefundingfornewenergytechnologies.[172]

TheEUcurrentlyimports82%ofitsoil,57%ofitsnaturalgas[174]and97.48%ofitsuranium[171]demands.ThereareconcernsthatEurope'sdependenceonRussianenergyisendangeringtheUnionanditsmembercountries.TheEUisattemptingtodiversifyitsenergysupply.[175]

Infrastructure

Furtherinformation:EuropeanCommissionerforTransport,EuropeanCommissionerforIndustryandEntrepreneurshipandEuropeanInvestmentBank

TheEUisworkingtoimprovecrossborderinfrastructurewithintheEU,forexamplethroughtheTransEuropeanNetworks(TEN).ProjectsunderTENincludetheChannelTunnel,LGVEst,theFrjusRailTunnel,theresundBridge,theBrennerBaseTunnelandtheStraitofMessinaBridge.In2001itwasestimatedthatby2010thenetworkwouldcover:75,200kilometres(46,700mi)ofroads78,000kilometres(48,000mi)ofrailways330airports270maritimeharboursand210internalharbours.[176][177]

ThedevelopingEuropeantransportpolicieswillincreasethepressureontheenvironmentinmanyregionsbytheincreasedtransportnetwork.Inthepre2004EUmembers,themajorproblemintransportdealswithcongestionandpollution.Aftertherecentenlargement,thenewstatesthatjoinedsince2004addedtheproblemofsolvingaccessibilitytothetransportagenda.[178]ThePolishroadnetworkinparticularwasinpoorcondition:atPoland'saccessiontotheEU,anumberofroadsneededtobeupgraded,particularlytheA4autostrada,requiringapproximately13billion.[179][180]

TheGalileopositioningsystemisanotherEUinfrastructureproject.GalileoisaproposedSatellitenavigationsystem,tobebuiltbytheEUandlaunchedbytheEuropeanSpaceAgency(ESA),andistobeoperationalby2012.TheGalileoprojectwaslaunchedpartlytoreducetheEU'sdependencyontheUSoperatedGlobal

PositioningSystem,butalsotogivemorecompleteglobalcoverageandallowforfargreateraccuracy,giventheagednatureoftheGPSsystem.[181]Ithasbeencriticisedbysomeduetocosts,delays,andtheirperceptionofredundancygiventheexistenceoftheGPSsystem.[182]

Agriculture

Mainarticle:CommonAgriculturalPolicy

TheCommonAgriculturalPolicy(CAP)isoneoftheoldestpoliciesoftheEuropeanCommunity,andwasoneofitscoreaims.[183]Thepolicyhastheobjectivesofincreasingagriculturalproduction,providingcertaintyinfoodsupplies,ensuringahighqualityoflifeforfarmers,stabilisingmarkets,andensuringreasonablepricesforconsumers.[t]Itwas,untilrecently,operatedbyasystemofsubsidiesandmarketintervention.Untilthe1990s,thepolicyaccountedforover60%ofthethenEuropeanCommunity'sannualbudget,andstillaccountsforaround34%.[184]

Thepolicy'spricecontrolsandmarketinterventionsledtoconsiderableoverproduction,resultinginsocalledbuttermountainsandwinelakes.ThesewereinterventionstoresofproductsboughtupbytheCommunitytomaintainminimumpricelevels.Todisposeofsurplusstores,theywereoftensoldontheworldmarketatpricesconsiderablybelowCommunityguaranteedprices,orfarmerswereofferedsubsidies(amountingtothedifferencebetweentheCommunityandworldprices)toexporttheirproductsoutsidetheCommunity.ThissystemhasbeencriticisedforundercuttingfarmersoutsideEurope,especiallythoseinthedevelopingworld.[185]

VineyardsinRomaniaEUfarmsaresupportedbytheCAP,thelargestbudgetaryexpenditure.

Theoverproductionhasalsobeencriticisedforencouragingenvironmentallyunfriendlyintensivefarmingmethods.[185]SupportersofCAPsaythattheeconomicsupportwhichitgivestofarmersprovidesthemwithareasonablestandardofliving,inwhatwouldotherwisebeaneconomicallyunviablewayoflife.However,theEU'ssmallfarmersreceiveonly8%ofCAP'savailablesubsidies.[185]

Sincethebeginningofthe1990s,theCAPhasbeensubjecttoaseriesofreforms.Initially,thesereformsincludedtheintroductionofsetasidein1988,whereaproportionoffarmlandwasdeliberatelywithdrawnfromproduction,milkquotas(bytheMcSharryreformsin1992)and,morerecently,the'decoupling'(ordisassociation)ofthemoneyfarmersreceivefromtheEUandtheamounttheyproduce(bytheFischlerreformsin2004).Agricultureexpenditurewillmoveawayfromsubsidypaymentslinkedtospecificproduce,towarddirectpaymentsbasedonfarmsize.Thisisintendedtoallowthemarkettodictateproductionlevels,whilemaintainingagriculturalincomelevels.[183]OneofthesereformsentailedtheabolitionoftheEU'ssugarregime,whichpreviouslydividedthesugarmarketbetweenmemberstatesandcertainAfricanCaribbeannationswithaprivilegedrelationshipwiththeEU.[152]

Demographics

Mainarticles:DemographicsoftheEuropeanUnionandLargestpopulationcentresintheEuropeanUnion

Asof1January2015,thepopulationoftheEUisabout508.2millionpeople.[7]

TheEUcontains16citieswithpopulationsofoveronemillion,thelargestbeingLondon.

Besidesmanylargecities,theEUalsoincludesseveraldenselypopulatedregionsthathavenosinglecorebuthaveemergedfromtheconnectionofseveralcitesandnowencompasslargemetropolitanareas.ThelargestareRhineRuhrhavingapproximately11.5millioninhabitants(Cologne,Dortmund,Dsseldorfetal.),Randstadapprox.7million(Amsterdam,Rotterdam,TheHague,Utrechtetal.),FrankfurtRhineMainMetropolitanRegionapprox.5.8million(Frankfurt,Wiesbadenetal.),theFlemishDiamondapprox.5.5million(urbanareainbetweenAntwerp,Brussels,LeuvenandGhent),KatowiceanditsUpperSilesianmetropolitanareaapprox.5.3millionandtheresundRegionapprox.3.7million(Copenhagen,DenmarkandMalm,Sweden).[188]

In2010,47.3millionpeoplelivedintheEU,whowerebornoutsidetheirresidentcountry.Thiscorrespondsto9.4%ofthetotalEUpopulation.Ofthese,31.4million(6.3%)werebornoutsidetheEUand16.0million(3.2%)wereborninanotherEUmemberstate.ThelargestabsolutenumbersofpeoplebornoutsidetheEUwereinGermany(6.4million),France(5.1million),theUnitedKingdom(4.7million),Spain(4.1million),Italy(3.2million),andtheNetherlands(1.4million).[189]

Vitalstatisticsinrecentyears[190][191](inthousands)

Year Population Livebirths Deaths Naturalchange

Netmigration

Totalchange

2012 505730.5 5231,1 10.4 5013,9 9.9 217,3 0.4 882,2 1099,52013 507416.6 5075,7 10.0 4999,2 9.9 76,5 0.1 653,1 729,6

Languages

Mainarticle:LanguagesoftheEuropeanUnion

AmongthemanylanguagesanddialectsusedintheEU,ithas24officialandworkinglanguages:Bulgarian,Croatian,Czech,Danish,Dutch,English,Estonian,Finnish,French,German,Greek,Hungarian,Italian,Irish,Latvian,Lithuanian,Maltese,Polish,Portuguese,Romanian,Slovak,Slovene,Spanish,andSwedish.[195][196]Importantdocuments,suchaslegislation,aretranslatedintoeveryofficiallanguage.

Language Nativespeakers Total

English 13% 51%German 16% 27%French 12% 24%Italian 13% 16%Spanish 8% 15%Polish 8% 9%Romanian 5% 5%Dutch 4% 5%Greek 3% 4%Hungarian 3% 3%Portuguese 2% 3%Czech 2% 3%Swedish 2% 3%Bulgarian 2% 2%Slovak 1% 2%Danish 1% 1%Finnish 1% 1%Lithuanian 1% 1%Croatian 1% 1%Slovenian

SelfdescribedreligionintheEuropeanUnion(2012)[206]

Catholic(48%)

Protestant(12%)

Orthodox(8%)

OtherChristian(4%)

Nonbeliever/Agnostic(16%)

Atheist(7%)

Muslim(2%)

Otherreligion/Nonestated(3%)

ErasmusProgrammelogo,representingthehumanistDesideriusErasmusofRotterdam.

EuropeanHealthInsuranceCard.(Frenchversionpictured)

AcropolisandColosseum,symbolsoftheGraecoRomanworld

BasiceducationisanareawheretheEU'sroleislimitedtosupportingnationalgovernments.Inhighereducation,thepolicywasdevelopedinthe1980sinprogrammessupportingexchangesandmobility.ThemostvisibleofthesehasbeentheErasmusProgramme,auniversityexchangeprogrammewhichbeganin1987.Initsfirst20years,ithassupportedinternationalexchangeopportunitiesforwellover1.5millionuniversityandcollegestudentsandhasbecomeasymbolofEuropeanstudentlife.[214]

Therearenowsimilarprogrammesforschoolpupilsandteachers,fortraineesinvocationaleducationandtraining,andforadultlearnersintheLifelongLearningProgramme20072013.TheseprogrammesaredesignedtoencourageawiderknowledgeofothercountriesandtospreadgoodpracticesintheeducationandtrainingfieldsacrosstheEU.[215][216]ThroughitssupportoftheBolognaProcess,theEUissupportingcomparablestandardsandcompatibledegreesacrossEurope.

ScientificdevelopmentisfacilitatedthroughtheEU'sFrameworkProgrammes,thefirstofwhichstartedin1984.TheaimsofEUpolicyinthisareaaretocoordinateandstimulateresearch.TheindependentEuropeanResearchCouncilallocatesEUfundstoEuropeanornationalresearchprojects.[217]EUresearchandtechnologicalframeworkprogrammesdealinanumberofareas,forexampleenergywhereitaimstodevelopadiversemixofrenewableenergyfortheenvironmentandtoreducedependenceonimportedfuels.[218]

Healthcare

Furtherinformation:HealthcareinEurope

AlthoughtheEUhasnomajorcompetencesinthefieldofhealthcare,Article35oftheCharterofFundamentalRightsoftheEuropeanUnionaffirmsthat"AhighlevelofhumanhealthprotectionshallbeensuredinthedefinitionandimplementationofallUnionpoliciesandactivities".Allthememberstateshaveeitherpubliclysponsoredandregulateduniversalhealthcareorpubliclyprovideduniversalhealthcare.TheEuropeanCommission'sDirectorateGeneralforHealthandConsumersseekstoalignnationallawsontheprotectionofpeople'shealth,ontheconsumers'rights,onthesafetyoffoodandotherproducts.[219][220][221]

HealthcareintheEUisprovidedthroughawiderangeofdifferentsystemsrunatthenationallevel.Thesystemsareprimarilypubliclyfundedthroughtaxation(universalhealthcare).Privatefundingforhealthcaremayrepresentpersonalcontributionstowardsmeetingthenontaxpayerrefundedportionofhealthcareormayreflecttotallyprivate(nonsubsidised)health

careeitherpaidoutofpocketormetbysomeformofpersonaloremployerfundedinsurance.

AllEUandmanyotherEuropeancountriesoffertheircitizensafreeEuropeanHealthInsuranceCardwhich,onareciprocalbasis,providesinsuranceforemergencymedicaltreatmentinsurancewhenvisitingotherparticipatingEuropeancountries.[222]AdirectiveoncrossborderhealthcareaimsatpromotingcooperationonhealthcarebetweenmemberstatesandfacilitatingaccesstosafeandhighqualitycrossborderhealthcareforEuropeanpatients.[223][224][225]

Culture

Mainarticles:CultureofEurope,WesterncultureandCulturalpoliciesoftheEuropeanUnion

CulturalcooperationbetweenmemberstateshasbeenaconcernoftheEUsinceitsinclusionasacommunitycompetencyintheMaastrichtTreaty.[226]ActionstakenintheculturalareabytheEUincludetheCulture20007year

programme,[226]theEuropeanCulturalMonthevent,[227]theMEDIAProgramme,[228]orchestrassuchastheEuropeanUnionYouthOrchestra[229]andtheEuropeanCapitalofCultureprogrammewhereoneormorecitiesintheEUareselectedforoneyeartoassisttheculturaldevelopmentofthatcity.[230]

Sport

Mainarticles:SportpoliciesoftheEuropeanUnionandSportinEurope

Clockwisefromtopleft:TheEuropeanflagseenattheoccasionofthe2004enlargementthereliquarybustofCharlemagne(c.1350)Europaandthebull,depictedasthepersonificationofEuropeina1700mapbyFredericusdeWit.

SportismainlytheresponsibilityofanindividualmemberstatesorotherinternationalorganisationsratherthanthatoftheEU.However,therearesomeEUpoliciesthathavehadanimpactonsport,suchasthefreemovementofworkerswhichwasatthecoreoftheBosmanruling,whichprohibitednationalfootballleaguesfromimposingquotasonforeignplayerswithEuropeancitizenship.[231]TheTreatyofLisbonrequiresanyapplicationofeconomicrulestotakeintoaccountthespecificnatureofsportanditsstructuresbasedonvoluntaryactivity.[232]ThisfollowedlobbyingbygoverningorganisationssuchastheInternationalOlympicCommitteeandFIFA,duetoobjectionsovertheapplicationsoffreemarketprinciplestosportwhichledtoanincreasinggapbetweenrichandpoorclubs.[233]TheEUdoesfundaprogrammeforIsraeli,Jordanian,Irish,andBritishfootballcoaches,aspartoftheFootball4Peaceproject.[234]

Symbols

Mainarticle:SymbolsofEurope

Theflagoftheunionconsistsofacircleof12goldenstarsonabluefield.Thebluerepresentsthewest,whilethenumberandpositionofthestarsrepresentcompletenessandunity,respectively.[235]Originallydesignedin1955fortheCouncilofEurope,theflagwasadoptedbytheEuropeanCommunities,thepredecessorsofthepresentunion,in1986.UnitedinDiversitywasadoptedasthemottooftheunionintheyear2000,havingbeenselectedfromproposalssubmittedbyschoolpupils.[236]Since1985,theflagdayoftheunionhasbeenEuropeDay,on9May,i.e.thedateofthe1950Schumandeclaration.TheanthemoftheunionisaninstrumentalversionofthepreludetotheOdetoJoy,the4thmovementofLudwigvanBeethoven'sninthsymphony.TheanthemwasadoptedbyEuropeanCommunityleadersin1985andhassincebeenplayedonofficialoccasions.[237]

Besidesnamingthecontinent,theGreekmythologicalfigureofEuropahasfrequentlybeenemployedasapersonificationofEurope.KnownfromthemythinwhichZeusseducesherintheguiseofawhitebull,Europahasalsobeenreferredtoinrelationtothepresentunion.StatuesofEuropaandthebulldecorateseveraloftheUnion'sinstitutions,andaportraitofherisseenonthe2013seriesofEurobanknotes.Thebullisforitspartdepictedonallresidencepermitcards.[238]

CharlestheGreat,alsoknownasCharlemagne(Latin:CarolusMagnus),establishedanempirethatrepresentedthemostexpansiveEuropeanunificationsincetheRomanera,andtherebyfoundedwhatbecametheFrenchandGermanmonarchies.[239][239][240][241][242]KnownasPaterEuropae(FatherofEurope),[239][243]heenjoyedanimportantafterlifeinEuropeanculture.ThepresentsymbolicrelevanceofCharlemagnepertainstohisembodimentofFrancoGermanrelations,onwhichEuropeanintegrationrelies.TheCommissionhasnamedoneofitscentralbuildingsinBrusselsafterCharlemagne,andtheGermancityofAachenhassince1949awardedtheCharlemagnePrizetochampionsofEuropeanunification.[244]Since2008,theorganisersofthisprize,inconjunctionwiththeEuropeanParliament,haveawardedtheCharlemagneYouthPrizeinrecognitionofsimilareffortsbyyoungpeople.[245]

ReligioussymbolsofEuropeanditsintegrationincludeSaintBenedict,whoin1964wasnamedpatronsaintofEuropebyPopePaulVI,andSaintHedwig,whoin1997wascanonisedaspatronsaintofEuropeanunificationbyPopeJohnPaulII.[246][247]

Seealso

OutlineoftheEuropeanUnionEuropeanUnionWikipediabook

Notesa. Notincludingoverseasterritoriesb. .euisrepresentativeofthewholeoftheEUmemberstatesalsohavetheirownTLDs.c. ThisfigureincludestheextraEuropeanterritoriesofmemberstateswhicharepartoftheEuropeanUnionandexcludestheEuropeanterritoriesofmemberstateswhicharenotpartoftheUnion.FormoreinformationseeSpecialmemberstate

territoriesandtheEuropeanUnion.d. OnOctober3,1990,theconstituentstatesoftheformerGermanDemocraticRepublicaccededtotheFederalRepublicofGermany,automaticallybecomingpartoftheEU.e. ReferredtobytheEUasthe"formerYugoslavRepublicofMacedonia".f. SeeArticle288(exArticle249TEC)oftheTreatyontheFunctioningoftheEuropeanUnion,oneurlex.europa.eu(http://eurlex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:C:2010:083:0047:0200:EN:PDF)

g. AccordingtotheprincipleofDirectEffectfirstinvokedintheCourtofJustice'sdecisioninVanGendenLoosvNederlandseAdministratiederBelastingen,EurLex(http://eurlex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:61962J0026:EN:NOT)(EuropeanCourtofJustice1963).See:CraiganddeBrca,ch.5.

h. AccordingtotheprincipleofSupremacyasestablishedbytheECJinCase6/64,FalminioCostav.ENEL[1964]ECR585.SeeCraiganddeBrca,ch.7.Seealso:Factortamelitigation:FactortameLtd.v.SecretaryofStateforTransport(No.2)[1991]1AC603,SolangeII(ReWuenscheHandelsgesellschaft,BVerfGdecisionof22October1986[1987]3CMLR225,265)andFrontiniv.MinisterodelleFinanze[1974]2CMLR372RaoulGeorgeNicolo[1990]1CMLR173.

i. ItiseffectivelytreatedasoneoftheCopenhagencriteria,Assembly.coe.int.(http://assembly.coe.int/Main.asp?link=/Documents/AdoptedText/ta08/ERES1610.htm)Itshouldbenotedthatthisisapoliticalandnotalegalrequirementformembership.

j. TheEuropeanConventiononHumanRightswaspreviouslyonlyopentomembersoftheCouncilofEurope(Article59.1oftheConvention(http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/en/Treaties/Html/005.htm)),andevennowonlystatesmaybecomememberoftheCouncilofEurope(Article4oftheStatuteoftheCouncilofEurope(http://conventions.coe.int/Treaty/en/Treaties/Html/001.htm)).

k. Opinion(2/92)oftheEuropeanCourtofJusticeon"AccessionbytheCommunitytotheEuropeanConventionfortheProtectionofHumanRightsandFundamentalFreedoms"1996E.C.R.I1759(http://eurlex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:61994V0002:FR:NOT)(inFrench),ruledthattheEuropeanCommunitydidnothavethecompetencetoaccedetotheECHR.

l. See:Case34/73,Variolav.AmministrazionedelleFinanze[1973]ECR981(http://eurlex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:61973J0034:EN:NOT).m. Todootherwisewouldrequirethedraftingoflegislationwhichwouldhavetocopewiththefrequentlydivergentlegalsystemsandadministrativesystemsofallofthenow28memberstates.SeeCraiganddeBrca,p.115n. SeeArticles157(exArticle141)oftheTreatyontheFunctioningoftheEuropeanUnion,oneurlex.europa.eu(http://eurlex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:C:2010:083:0013:0046:EN:PDF)o. SeeArticle2(7)oftheAmsterdamTreatyoneurlex.europa.eu(http://eurlex.europa.eu/en/treaties/dat/11997D/htm/11997D.html#0001010001)p. CouncilDirective2000/43/ECof29June2000implementingtheprincipleofequaltreatmentbetweenpersonsirrespectiveofracialorethnicorigin(OJL180,19July2000,p.2226)CouncilDirective2000/78/ECof27November2000

establishingageneralframeworkforequaltreatmentinemploymentandoccupation(OJL303,2December2000,p.1622).q. Article3(1)(g)oftheTreatyofRomer. InordertomeettheeuroconvergencecriteriaitisnecessaryfirsttojointheEuropeanExchangeRateMechanism,somethingSwedenhasdeclinedtodo:"ERMII".DanishFinanceMinistry.20March2009.Retrieved26December2009.s. NotethatalthoughalmostallUraniumisimported,

NuclearPowerisconsideredprimaryenergyproducedintheEUt. Article39(exArticle33)oftheTreatyontheFunctioningoftheEuropeanUnion,oneurlex.europa.eu(http://eurlex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:C:2010:083:0047:0200:EN:PDF)u. SeeArticles165and166(exArticles149and150)oftheTreatyontheFunctioningoftheEuropeanUnion,oneurlex.europa.eu(http://eurlex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:C:2010:083:0047:0200:EN:PDF)

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