EUROPEAN UNION

Ana Bojinović, Department of IR, UL FSS

CONTENT – EU as a phenomenon

• Symbols

• Historical context

• Fields of co-operation

• Institutions, decision-making

Greek mythology:Phoenician, Zeus in the

image of bull took her to

Crete Zeus’ wife, goddess

ORIGIN of Europe

SYMBOLS of the EU• FLAG

• ANTHEM- in the widest sense of EUROPE- melody: written in 1785 by the German poet and

historian Friedrich Schiller, musical setting by Ludwig van Beethoven in the fourth and final movement of his Ninth Symphony (completed in 1824)

• EUROPE DAY 9 Maj (1950 – "Schuman declaration”)

EUROPEAN UNION

- European states =

regional co-operation- peace in Europe

(FRA-GER)

- post-war reconstruction

COMMUNITY:• 1950, Robert Schuman, Jean Monnet

• 1951, ECSC• 1957, EURATOM• 1957, EEC

Foundations and development of the EU and its treaties

1951 – ECSC (Paris Treaty)1957 – EURATOM 3 common institutions

1957 – EEC (Rome treaties) (1965)

1986 – Single European Act 1992 – Treaty on the EU - Maastricht treaty

1997 – Amsterdam treaty 2000 – Nice treaty ? – Treaty establishing a Constitution for EuropeECSC treaty

was in force until

year 2002

ENLARGEMENT• 1951 – FR, GER, IT, BE, NL, LUX• 1973 – UK, IR, DEN• 1981 – GR• 1986 – SPA, POR• 1995 – AUT, FI, SWE• 2004 – CY, CZE, EST, LAT, LIT,

MAD, MAL, POL, SV, SI• 2007 – BOL, ROM • Candidates: CRO, TUR, FYRM• Membership perspective: WB• Co-operation: a) Neighbourhood (E-EUROPE,

MEDITERRANEAN) b) Third states/regions (Lat. Am.,

S-Am., ACP, A&A, Centr. Azija)

WHO can become a member of the EU?European stateCopenhagen criteria, 1993: • political: stability of institutions

guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for and protection of minorities;

• economic: existence of a functioning market economy and the capacity to cope with competitive pressure and market forces within the Union;

• acceptance of the Community acquis: ability to take on the obligations of membership, including adherence to the aims of political, economic and monetary union

Political context of enlargement

• 6 founding states

• 3 democratic states (EFTA), join in 1973

• 3 states in democratisation process 1980s

• 3 neutral states

• Central- and Eastern European states

Who of Europe is still out of the EU?

DEEPENING of the EU

• Coal and steel

• Atomic energy

• economy (free trade area, customs union, common market, economic and monetary union, common fiscal policy)

• Other policies (agriculture, environment, human rights, health, consumers, development, regionalisation, social, cultural, education, foreign, asylum, and others)

3-pillar structure of the EU

Institutions of the EU• European Parliament• European Commission decision-making • Council (of the EU)

• European Council – impetus, political leadership consultations• Court of Justice (upholds the rule of European law)• Court of Auditors (checks the financing of the Union’s activities)

• European Economic and Social Committee, represents civil society, employers and employees;• Committee of the Regions represents regional and local authorities;• European Investment Bank finances EU investment projects, and helps small businesses via the

European Investment Fund;• European Central Bank is responsible for European monetary policy;• European Ombudsman investigates complaints about maladministration by EU institutions and

bodies;• European Data Protection Supervisor safeguards the privacy of people’s personal data;• Office for Official Publications of the European Communities publishes information about the EU;• European Personnel Selection Office recruits staff for the EU institutions and other bodies;• European Administrative School task is to provide training in specific areas for members of EU

staff.• specialised agencies have been set up to handle certain technical, scientific or management

tasks

European ParliamentStrasbourg

Brussels

Luxembourg is home to the administrative offices (the ‘General Secretariat’). Meetings of the whole Parliament, known as ‘plenary sessions’, take place in Strasbourg and sometimes in Brussels. Committee meetings are also held in Brussels.

Luxembourg

TASKS1) Passing European laws – jointly

with the Council in many policy areas.

2) Parliament exercises democratic supervision over the other EU institutions, and in particular the Commission.

- power to approve or reject the nomination of commissioners,

- right to censure the Commission as a whole.

3) The power of the purse. Parliament shares with the Council authority over the EU budget and can therefore influence EU spending. At the end of the procedure, it adopts or rejects the budget in its entirety.

• elected by the citizens of the EU

• every 5 years • to represent their interests – • guarantee of democratic

legitimacy

• 785 members from all 27 EU countries (not to exceed 736 from 2009)

• 7 Europe-wide political groups

• number of seats per country

• distribution according to no. of citizens per state

STRUCTUREE. Parliament

European Commission

+ representations in all EU countries and delegations in many capital cities around the world

Brussels

TASKSindependent of national governments - SUPRANATIONAL

1) to propose legislation to Parliament and the Council;

2) to manage and implement EU policies and the budget;

3) to enforce European law (jointly with the Court of Justice);

4) to represent the EU on the international stage, for example by negotiating agreements between the EU and other countries.

• 2 meanings (a-body, b-institution)a) - ‘commissioners’,

appointed every five years, within six months of the elections to the European Parliament.

- president b) - departments, known as

‘Directorates-General’ (DGs) and ‘services’ (such as the Legal Service

- overall coordination is provided by the Secretariat-General

STRUCTURE

E. Commission

Council (of the EU)

NOT EUROPEAN COUNCIL NOT COUNCIL OF EUROPE

Brussels

TASKS- main decision-making body - represents the member states 1) To pass European laws – jointly

with the European Parliament in many policy areas.

2) To co-ordinate the broad economic policies of the member states.

3) To conclude international agreements between the EU and other countries or international organisations.

4) To approve the EU’s budget, jointly with the European Parliament.

5) To develop the EU’s CFSP, based on guidelines set by the European Council.

6) To co-ordinate co-operation between the national courts and police forces in criminal matters

• 1 minister per member state• 9 different configurations • COREPER• Council Presidency• General secretariat

VOTING UNANUMITY or QUALIFIED MAJORITY(TOTAL 345)• Germany, France, Italy and the United

Kingdom: 29• Spain and Poland: 27• Romania: 14• The Netherlands: 13• Belgium, Czech Republic, Greece,

Hungary and Portugal: 12• Austria, Bulgaria and Sweden: 10• Denmark, Ireland, Lithuania, Slovakia and

Finland: 7• Cyprus, Estonia, Latvia, Luxembourg and

Slovenia: 4• Malta: 3

STRUCTURE

Council

EUROPEAN COUNCIL

No seat

TASKS1) provides the impetus for the

major political issues relating to European integration:

- amendments to the Treaties and changes to the institutions,

- declarations on external relations in the context of the CFSP

2) serves as a forum for top-level political discussion in crisis situations and it endeavours to resolve disagreements between Member States. Following negotiations between the Member States, the European Council, on a consensus basis, can issue:

- guidelines, - declarations or resolutions.

• Heads of State or Government of the Member States of the EU and the President of the Commission

• 1974 • meets at least once every six

months under the chairmanship of the Head of State or Government of the Member State which holds the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, which rotates twice a year

• Decision-making by consensus

STRUCTUREEuropean Council

Decision-making procedure

COUNCIL E. COMMISSION E. PARLIAMENT

discusses proposes discusses

ADOPTS IMPLEMENTS SUPERVISES

Consultation (e.g. transport, research)

Assent (e.g. revision of the Treaties)

Codecision (e.g. the internal market)

Questions?

INFO on EU:Gateaway to the EU http://www.europa.eu