European Union

Disciplines: Economics, Political Science

Usually abbreviated as: E.U.

A still-enlarging union that binds the majority of the European countries together through a set of institutions that govern the economic, political, and judicial affairs on a supranational level.

It has its own legislative (European Parliament (lower), Council of the European Union (upper)), executive (European Commission), and judicial (European Court of Justice) branches; its own central bank (European Central Bank); and its own currency (Euro).

The European Union (EU) evolved from the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), European Economic Community (EEC), and the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC). Each of these institutions had six Western European members. The Merger Treaty (1965) merged these three institutions under the roof of the European Economic Community (EEC), which was renamed European Community by the Maastricht Treaty (1992).

The chronological expansion of the membership in the EU has occurred as follows:

Founding Members (1952): Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands

1973: Denmark, Ireland, United Kingdom

1986: Portugal, Spain

1995: Austria, Finland, Sweden

1981: Greece

2004: Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia

2007: Bulgaria, Romania

Also see:

· Amsterdam Treaty (1997)
· Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union
· community acquis
· Convention on the Future of Europe
· Council of the European Union
· Draft Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe
· Euratom Treaty (1957)
· Euro
· eurozone
· European Atomic Energy Community
· European Central Bank
· European Coal and Steel Community
· European Commission
· European Community
· European Council
· European Court of Human Rights
· European Court of Justice
· European Convention (1999-2000)
· European Convention on Human Rights
· European Currency Unit (ECU)
· European Monetary System
· European Parliament
· Council of the European Union
· European Parliament
· Laken Declaration
· Maastricht criteria
· Maastricht Treaty (1992)
· Merger Treaty (1965)
· Netherlands Antilles Association Convention
· OCT status
· Schengen Agreement
· Schengen Area
· Single European Act (1986)
· Treaty of Lisbon (2007)
· Treaty of London (1949)
· Treaty of Nice (2001)
· Treaty of Paris (1951)
· Treaty of Rome (1957)

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