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European Union
There are five main governmental institutions of the EU. Both the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union make EU laws, among other responsibilities. Members of Parliament are elected directly, with proportionately larger numbers elected by the citizens of more populous countries. Members of the Council are appointed by the EU members' national governments, with the presidency shared on a rotating basis. Each president holds office for a six-month term. The European Commission is the executive branch of EU government and the “driving force” behind many of its actions. The Court of Justice resolves disputes between national laws and EU laws, while the Court of Auditors ensures that the budget is managed correctly.
When the European Parliament meets, its representatives sit with other members of their political group (consisting of several national political parties) rather than sitting in national groups. Among the larger political groups are the European Socialists, the European People's party (or Christian Democrats), the Liberal Democratic and Reform Group, the European Democrats, the European United Left, and the Greens (an environmental group).
After the terrible destruction and loss of life caused by World War II, many hoped that international cooperation would help Europe avoid future wars. Some felt that stronger economies would aid western European democracies, which they believed were threatened by the Communist states of eastern Europe (see Cold War). However, a union did not always seem possible. Few politicians wished to give up power, and they only gradually cooperated when international agreements also served their own interests, which might have included helping their own national corporations and special interest groups.
The creation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was the first step on the road toward western European integration. It was formed through the efforts of Paul-Henri Spaak of Belgium and Robert Schuman and Jean Monnet of France, among other leaders. Schuman called for integration in a speech on May 9, 1950 (a date now celebrated as “Europe Day”). As a result, in April 1951 the Treaty of Paris set up an international agency to supervise the coal and steel industries of Belgium, France, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and The Netherlands. The treaty took effect on July 25, 1952. Brussels, Belgium, was named as headquarters for the ECSC, as it later was for the EU. By 1954 nearly all barriers to intra-community trade in coal and steel had been removed, and this success prompted further cooperation. (See also Monnet, Jean; Spaak, Paul-Henri.)
The same six countries agreed to establish the European Economic Community (EEC), or Common Market, in the Treaty of Rome in March 1957, and the EEC officially came into existence on Jan. 1, 1958. Among its goals were to remove European trade barriers, to establish a single trade policy toward nonmember countries, to coordinate transportation systems and agricultural policies, to help workers move freely across borders, and to encourage free-market competition. Meanwhile, the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) began coordinating nuclear energy for western Europe.
On July 1, 1967, the members of the ECSC, EEC, and Euratom created the European Commission (EC), which is regarded as the immediate predecessor of the EU. Denmark, the United Kingdom, and Ireland joined the EC in 1973; Greece in 1981; and Spain and Portugal in 1986. Germany took on an even more central role in the organization after the Berlin Wall was dismantled in 1989 (an event so surprising that it changed the political climate almost overnight). On Oct. 1, 1990, East and West Germany were officially reunified.
Several other political events energized the process of integration, such as the momentous decline and breakup of the Soviet Union (and end of the Cold War), the Persian Gulf War of 1990–91, and the civil wars and splintering of Yugoslavia. Another factor was globalization, or the increasing development of worldwide economic and cultural connections. In the midst of these changes, a stronger European trading bloc—within a closer political union—was seen as a way to compete economically with the United States.
In April 1990 the EC committed itself to a common foreign and defense policy, and in 1991 the EC and the seven-member European Free Trade Association agreed to create a free-trade zone called the European Economic Area, which took effect on Jan. 1, 1993. Meanwhile, in December 1991 delegates from the 12 member states met in Maastricht, Netherlands, to call for a closer political union, a central bank, and a common currency. After a lengthy ratification process, the historic Maastricht Treaty took effect on Nov. 1, 1993, the date marking the official creation of the EU.
Austria, Finland, and Sweden joined the EU on Jan. 1, 1995, but voters in Norway rejected membership in 1994. The EU currency, known as the euro, made its debut in 11 member countries in 1999. In 2003 the EU invited several of the formerly Communist countries of eastern Europe—the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia—to join the organization, along with Cyprus and Malta. They became full EU members on May 1, 2004, bringing the total number of EU countries to 25. Meanwhile, the EU allowed for the possibility of future membership for Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, and Turkey.
Some have heralded the EU as the beginning of a federally united Europe, but not everyone shares this ideal. For example, citizens of smaller nations have been concerned that larger countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom, and France may wield too much influence. International events have also brought disagreements into the union, as occurred when the British joined in the United States–led invasion of Iraq in 2003 despite objections from Germany, France, and other EU countries. There have also been debates over EU economic policies and their varying levels of support for small farmers, industrial workers, international investors, and powerful multinational corporations. The EU has achieved a large degree of political cooperation while also becoming a sort of economic “counterbalance” to the United States, but its effectiveness in the 21st century will depend on numerous events at local, national, and global levels.
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Source: Encyclopedia Britannica