The European Union is. European Union (EU): general characteristics EU composition

European Union - Regional Integration of European States

History of creation, member states of the Union, rights, goals, objectives and policies of the European Union

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The European Union is, the definition

The European Union is economic and political union of 28 European states aimed at their regional integration. This union was legally secured by the Maastricht Treaty, which entered into force on November 1, 1993, on the principles of the European Communities. The EU unites five hundred million inhabitants.

The European Union is unique international education: it combines the characteristics of an international organization and a state, but formally it is neither one nor the other. The Union is not a subject of public international law, but it has the authority to participate in international relations and plays an important role in them.

The European Union is unification of European states participating in the process of European integration.

With the help of a standardized system of laws in force in all countries of the Union, a common market has been created, guaranteeing the free movement of people, goods, capital and services, including the abolition of passport controls within the Schengen area, which includes both member states and other European states ... The union adopts laws (directives, statutes and regulations) in the field of justice and home affairs, as well as develops a common policy in the field of trade, agriculture, fisheries and regional development. Seventeen countries of the union have introduced a single currency, the euro, forming the eurozone.

As a subject of public international law, the Union has the authority to participate in international relations and conclude international treaties. A common foreign and security policy has been formed, providing for a coordinated foreign and defense policy. All over the world, permanent EU diplomatic missions have been established, there are representations in the United Nations, the WTO, the G8 and the G20. EU Delegations are led by EU Ambassadors. In certain areas, decisions are made by independent supranational institutions, while in others, decisions are made through negotiations between member states. The most important EU institutions are the European Commission, the Council of the European Union, the European Council, the Court of Justice of the European Union, the European Court of Accounts and the European Central Bank. The European Parliament is elected every five years by EU citizens.

Member States of the European Union

The EU includes 28 countries: Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Germany, France, Denmark, Ireland, Great Britain, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Austria, Finland, Sweden, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, Slovenia , Cyprus (except for the northern part of the island), Malta, Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia.

Special and dependent territories of the EU member states

Overseas Territories and Crown Possessions of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (Great Britain), which are part of the European Union through British Membership under the 1972 Accession Act: Channel Islands: Guernsey, Jersey, Alderney is part of the Crown Possession of Guernsey, Sark is part of the Crown Possession Guernsey, Herm is part of the Crown Possession of Guernsey, Gibraltar, Isle of Man, Special Territories outside Europe that are part of the European Union: Azores, Guadeloupe, Canary Islands, Madeira, Martinique, Melilla, Reunion, Ceuta, French Guiana

Also, according to Article 182 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union, EU member states associate with the European Union lands and territories outside Europe that maintain special relations with: Denmark - Greenland, France - New Caledonia, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, French Polynesia, Mayotte, Wallis and Futuna, French Southern and Antarctic Territories, the Netherlands - Aruba, the Netherlands Antilles, the United Kingdom - Anguilla, Bermuda, British Antarctic Territory, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Montserrat, Saint Helena, Falkland Islands, Pitcairn, Turks and Caicos Islands, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.

EU Candidate Requirements

To join the European Union, the candidate country must meet the Copenhagen criteria. The Copenhagen criteria are the criteria for countries to join the European Union, which were adopted in June 1993 at a meeting of the European Council in Copenhagen and confirmed in December 1995 at a meeting of the European Council in Madrid. The criteria require that the state observes democratic principles, the principles of freedom and respect for human rights, as well as the principle of the rule of law (Art. 6, Art. 49 of the Treaty on the European Union). Also, the country must have a competitive market economy and the common rules and standards of the EU must be recognized, including a commitment to the goals of a political, economic and monetary union.

Development history of the European Union

The predecessors of the EU were: 1951-1957 - the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC); 1957-1967 - European Economic Community (EEC); 1967–1992 - European Communities (EEC, Euratom, ECSC); from November 1993 - European Union. The name "European Communities" is often used to refer to all stages of the EU's development. The ideas of pan-Europeanism, long put forward by thinkers throughout the history of Europe, sounded with particular force after the Second World War. In the post-war period, a number of organizations appeared on the continent: the Council of Europe, NATO, the Western European Union.

The first step towards the creation of a modern European Union was taken in 1951: Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Italy signed an agreement on the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC - European Coal and Steel Community), the purpose of which was to unite European resources for the production of steel and coal, this agreement entered into force in July 1952. In order to deepen economic integration, the same six states in 1957 established the European Economic Community (EEC, Common Market) (EEC - European Economic Community) and the European Community for atomic energy(Euratom, Euratom - European Atomic Energy Community). The most important and broadest in terms of competence of these three European communities was the EEC, so in 1993 it was officially renamed the European Community (EC - European Community).

The process of development and transformation of these European communities into the modern European Union took place through, firstly, the transfer of everything more management functions at the supranational level and, secondly, increasing the number of participants in integration.

On the territory of Europe, the Western Roman Empire, the Frankish state, and the Holy Roman Empire were unified state entities comparable in size to the European Union. During the last millennium, Europe has been fragmented. European thinkers tried to come up with a way to unify Europe. The idea of ​​creating the United States of Europe originally arose after the American Revolution.

This idea was given new life after World War II, when Winston Churchill declared the need for its implementation, who called on September 19, 1946 in his speech at the University of Zurich for the creation of a "United States of Europe" similar to the United States of America. As a result, in 1949 the Council of Europe was created - an organization that still exists (Russia is also a member of it). The Council of Europe, however, was (and remains) something of a regional equivalent of the UN, focusing its activities on the problems of ensuring human rights in European countries. .

The first stage of European integration

In 1951, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Italy created the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the purpose of which was to unite European resources for the production of steel and coal, which, according to its founders, should have prevent another war in Europe. Great Britain refused to participate in this organization for reasons of national sovereignty. In order to deepen economic integration, the same six states in 1957 established the European Economic Community (EEC, Common Market) (EEC - European Economic Community) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom - European Atomic Energy Community). The EEC was created primarily as a customs union of six states, designed to ensure the freedom of movement of goods, services, capital and people.

Euratom was supposed to contribute to the unification of the peaceful nuclear resources of these states. The most important of these three European communities was the European Economic Community, so later (in the 1990s) it became known simply as the European Community (EC - European Community). The EEC was established by the 1957 Treaty of Rome, which entered into force on January 1, 1958. In 1959, the EEC members created the European Parliament, a representative consultative and later legislative body. The process of development and transformation of these European communities into the modern European Union took place through structural simultaneous evolution and institutional transformation into a more cohesive block of states with the transfer of an increasing number of management functions to the supranational level (the so-called process of European integration, or deepening union of states), on the one hand, and an increase in the number of members of the European communities (and later the European Union) from 6 to 27 states ( enlargement union of states).

Second stage of European integration

In January 1960 Great Britain and a number of other countries not included in the EEC formed an alternative organization - the European Free Trade Association. The UK, however, soon realized that the EEC was a much more efficient union and decided to join the EEC. Ireland and Denmark followed suit, whose economies relied heavily on trade with Great Britain. Norway made a similar decision, but the first attempt in 1961-1963, however, ended in failure due to the fact that French President de Gaulle vetoed the decision to join the EEC. The outcome of the accession negotiations in 1966-1967 was similar. In 1967, the three European communities (the European Coal and Steel Community, the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Community) merged into the European Community.

The matter got off the ground only after General Charles de Gaulle was replaced by Georges Pompidou in 1969. After several years of negotiations and adaptation of legislation, Great Britain joined the EU on January 1, 1973. In 1972, referendums on EU accession were held in Ireland, Denmark and Norway. The populations of Ireland (83.1%) and Denmark (63.3%) supported the accession to the EU, but in Norway this proposal did not receive a majority (46.5%). Israel also received a proposal to join in 1973. However, due to the Yom Kippur War, the negotiations were interrupted. And in 1975, instead of membership in the EEC, Israel signed an agreement on associative cooperation (membership). Greece applied for accession to the EU in June 1975 and became a member of the community on January 1, 1981. In 1979, the first direct elections to the European Parliament were held. 1985 Greenland received internal self-government and after a referendum withdrew from the EU. Portugal and Spain applied in 1977 and became members of the EU on January 1, 1986. In February 1986, the Single European Act was signed in Luxembourg.

The third stage of European integration

In 1992, all states of the European Community signed the Treaty establishing the European Union - the Maastricht Treaty. The Maastricht Treaty established three pillars of the EU: 1. Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), 2. Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), 3. Common Internal Affairs and Justice Policy. In 1994, EU membership referendums were held in Austria, Finland, Norway and Sweden. The majority of Norwegians again vote against. Austria, Finland (with the Aland Islands) and Sweden become EU members on January 1, 1995. Only Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein remain members of the European Free Trade Association. members of the European Community signed the Amsterdam Treaty (entered into force in 1999). The main changes under the Amsterdam Treaty concerned: the common foreign and security policy of the CFSP, the creation of a "space of freedom, security and law and order", coordination in the field of justice, the fight against terrorism and organized crime.

The fourth stage of European integration

On October 9, 2002, the European Commission recommended 10 candidate states for accession to the EU in 2004: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta. The population of these 10 countries was about 75 million; Their combined GDP at PPP (note: Purchasing Power Parity) is approximately US $ 840 billion, roughly equal to that of Spain, making this EU enlargement one of the most ambitious EU projects to date. The need for such a step was dictated by the desire to draw a line under the division of Europe, which had lasted since the end of World War II, and to firmly tie the countries of Eastern Europe to the West in order to prevent them from falling back to communist methods of government. Cyprus was included in this list because Greece insisted on it, which otherwise threatened to veto the entire plan.

Upon completion of negotiations between the “old” and future “new” EU members, a positive final decision was announced on December 13, 2002. The European Parliament approved the decision on April 9, 2003. On April 16, 2003, 15 “old” and 10 “new” EU members signed the Accession Treaty in Athens (). In 2003, referendums were held in nine states (with the exception of Cyprus), and then the signed Treaty was ratified by parliaments. On May 1, 2004, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta became members of the European Union. to the EU of ten new countries, the level of economic development of which is significantly lower than the European average, the leaders of the European Union found themselves in a situation where the main burden of budget spending on social sphere, subsidies to agriculture, etc. falls on them. At the same time, these countries do not want to increase the share of contributions to the all-union budget in excess of the level of 1% of GDP determined by the EU documents.

The second problem is that after the enlargement of the European Union, the principle of making the most important decisions by consensus turned out to be less effective. At the referendums in France and the Netherlands in 2005, the draft of a single EU Constitution was rejected, and the entire European Union still lives on a number of fundamental treaties. On January 1, 2007, the next enlargement of the European Union took place - the entry of Bulgaria and Romania into it. The EU has previously warned these countries that Romania and Bulgaria still have a lot to do in the area of ​​fighting corruption and reforming legislation. In these issues, Romania, according to European officials, lagged behind, retaining vestiges of socialism in the structure of the economy and not meeting EU standards.

The EU

On December 17, 2005, the official status of a candidate for EU membership was granted to Macedonia. On February 21, 2005, the European Union signed an action plan with Ukraine. Probably, this was the result of the fact that forces came to power in Ukraine, whose foreign policy strategy is aimed at joining the European Union. At the same time, in the opinion of the EU leadership, it is not worth talking about Ukraine's full membership in the European Union, since the new government needs to do a lot to prove that there is a full-fledged democracy in Ukraine that meets world standards, and to conduct political, economic and social reforms.

Union member candidates and "refuseniks"

Not all European countries intend to participate in the European integration process. Twice in national referendums (1972 and 1994) the population of Norway rejected the proposal to join the EU. Iceland is not a member of the EU. The application of Switzerland is frozen, the accession of which was stopped by a referendum. This country, however, joined the Schengen Agreement on January 1, 2007. The small states of Europe - Andorra, Vatican, Liechtenstein, Monaco, San Marino are not EU members. Not part of the EU with an autonomous status within Denmark Greenland (withdrew after a referendum 1985) and the Faroe Islands, the Finnish autonomy of the Aland Islands and the overseas territory of Great Britain - Gibraltar, other dependent territories of Great Britain - Maine, Guernsey and Jersey are not at all part of the EU to a limited and not full extent in the EU.

In Denmark, the people voted in a referendum on joining the European Union (on signing the Maastricht Treaty) only after the government promised not to switch to a single currency, the Euro, so Danish crowns are still in circulation in Denmark.

The deadline for the start of accession negotiations with Croatia has been determined, the official status of a candidate for EU membership has been granted to Macedonia, which practically guarantees the accession of these EU countries. A number of documents related to Turkey and Ukraine have also been signed, but the specific prospects for these states' accession to the EU are not yet clear.

The new leadership of Georgia has also repeatedly announced its intention to join the EU, but no specific documents that would ensure at least the beginning of the negotiation process on this issue have not yet been signed and, most likely, will not be signed until it is settled. conflict with unrecognized states South Ossetia and Abkhazia. A similar problem with progress towards European integration exists in Moldova - the leadership of the unrecognized Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic does not support Moldova's aspirations to join the European Union. Currently, the prospects for Moldova's accession to the EU are very vague.

It should be noted that the EU has experience in accepting Cyprus, which also does not have full control over the territory officially recognized for it. However, the accession of Cyprus to the EU took place after a referendum was held simultaneously in both parts of the island, and while the majority of the population of the unrecognized Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus voted for the reintegration of the island into a single state, the unification process was blocked by the Greek side, which eventually joined The EU alone. The prospects for accession to the European Union for such states of the Balkan Peninsula as Albania and Bosnia are unclear, due to their low level of economic development and an unstable political environment. Moreover, this can be said about Serbia, whose province of Kosovo is currently under the international protectorate of NATO and the UN. Montenegro, which left the union with Serbia as a result of the referendum, openly declared its desire for European integration and the question of the timing and procedure for this republic's accession to the EU is now a subject of negotiations.

Of the other states fully or partially located in Europe, they did not conduct any negotiations and did not make any attempts to start the process of European integration: Armenia, the Republic of Belarus, Kazakhstan. Since 1993, Azerbaijan has declared its interest in relations with the EU and has begun planning relations with him in various fields. In 1996, the President of the Republic of Azerbaijan G. Aliyev signed the "Agreement on Partnership and Cooperation" and established official ties. Russia, through the mouths of officials, has repeatedly announced its unwillingness to fully join the European Union, proposing instead to implement the concept of “four common spaces”, accompanied by “road maps” and facilitating cross-border movement of citizens, economic integration and cooperation in a number of other areas. The only exception was the statement made at the end of November 2005 by Russian President Vladimir Putin that he "would be happy if Russia received an invitation to join the EU." However, this statement was accompanied by a clause that he himself would not come forward with a request for admission to the EU.

An important point is that Russia and Belarus, which signed the agreement on the creation of the Union, could not, in principle, begin any actions on independent accession to the EU without terminating this agreement. Countries outside the European Continent have repeatedly declared their European integration intentions. the African states of Morocco and Cape Verde (former Cape Verde Islands) - the latter with the political support of its former metropolis - Portugal, in March 2005 began formal attempts to apply for membership.

Rumors about the possible beginning of the movement towards full accession to the EU for Tunisia, Algeria and Israel are regularly circulated, but so far such a prospect should be considered illusory. So far, these countries, as well as Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, the Palestinian National Authority and the aforementioned Morocco, have been offered participation in the “partner-neighbors” program as a compromise measure, which implies obtaining in some distant future the status of associate members of the EU.

The enlargement of the European Union is the process of expanding the European Union (EU) through the accession of new member states. The process began with the Inner Six (the 6 countries that pioneered the founding of the EU), which organized the European Coal and Steel Community (the predecessor of the EU) in 1951. Since then, 27 states have received EU membership, including Bulgaria and Romania in 2007. The EU is currently considering applications for accession from several states. Sometimes EU enlargement is also called European integration. However, the term is also used when it comes to enhancing cooperation between EU member states, as national governments allow the gradual centralization of power within European institutions. To join the European Union, the applicant state must meet the political and economic conditions commonly known as the Copenhagen criteria (drawn up after the “Copenhagen meeting” in June 1993.).

These conditions are: the stability and democracy of the existing government in the country, its respect for the rule of law, as well as the availability of appropriate freedoms and institutions. According to the Maastricht Treaty, each current member state as well as the European Parliament must agree on any enlargement. Due to the conditions that were adopted in the last EU treaty, the "Nice Treaty" (in 2001) - the EU is protected from further enlargement beyond its 27 members, as it is believed that the decision-making processes in the EU would not be able to cope with a large number of members. The Lisbon Treaty would transform these processes and allow bypassing the limit of 27 member countries, although the possibility of ratifying such an agreement is questionable.

Founder members of the EU

The European Coal and Steel Consolidation was proposed by Robert Schumann in his statement of May 9, 1950, and brought about the unification of the coal and steel industries in France and West Germany. This project was joined by the "Benelux countries" - Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, which have already achieved some degree of integration with each other. Italy joined these countries, and all of them signed the Paris Treaty on July 23, 1952. These six countries, dubbed the Inner Six (as opposed to the Outer Seven, which formed the European Free Trade Association and were suspicious of integration), went further. In 1967, they signed a treaty in Rome that laid the foundation for two communities, collectively known as the "European Communities" after the merger of their leadership.

The community lost part of its territories during the era of decolonization; Algeria, previously an integral part of France, and therefore of the community, gained independence on July 5, 1962 and seceded from it. There were no extensions until the 1970s; The UK, which had previously refused to join the community, changed its policy after the Suez crisis and applied for membership in the community. However, French President Charles de Gaulle vetoed UK membership for fear of his "American influence."

The first enlargements of the European Union

As soon as de Gaulle left his post, the opportunity to join the Community opened up again. Together with the United Kingdom, Denmark, Ireland and Norway submitted applications and received approval, but the Norwegian government lost the national referendum on Community membership and therefore did not join the Community on January 1, 1973 on par with other countries. Gibraltar, a British Overseas Territory, was annexed to the Community of Great Britain.

1970 saw the restoration of democracy in Greece, Spain and Portugal. Greece (in 1981), followed by both Iberian countries (in 1986), received admission to the community. In 1985, Greenland, having received autonomy from Denmark, immediately exercised its right to secede from the European Community. Morocco and Turkey applied in 1987, but Morocco refused because it was not considered a European state. Turkey's application was accepted for consideration, but only in 2000 Turkey received the status of a candidate, and only in 2004 official negotiations on Turkey's accession to the Community began.

Post-cold war European Union

In 1989-1990, the Cold War ended, on October 3, 1990, East and West Germany were reunited. Consequently, East Germany became part of a community within a unified Germany. In 1993, the European Community became the European Union through the 1993 Maastricht Treaty. Some of the countries of the European Free Trade Association, bordering the old Eastern Bloc even before the end of the Cold War, applied to join the Community.

In 1995 Sweden, Finland and Austria were admitted to the EU. This was the 4th EU enlargement. The Norwegian government failed at that time the second national referendum on membership. The end of the Cold War and the Westernization of Eastern Europe have presented the EU with the need to agree on standards for future new members in order to assess their suitability. According to the Copenhagen criteria, it was decided that the country should be a democracy, have a free market and be willing to accept all EU rights already agreed upon earlier.

EU Eastern bloc enlargements

8 of these countries (Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia) and the Mediterranean island states of Malta and Cyprus joined the union on May 1, 2004. It was the largest expansion in terms of human and territorial indicators, albeit the smallest in terms of GDP (gross domestic product). The lesser development of these countries has led some member countries to anxiety, as a result of which some restrictions on employment and travel have been adopted regarding citizens of the new member countries. Migration, which would have taken place anyway, has given rise to many political clichés (such as the "Polish plumber"), despite the proven benefits of migrants for the economies of these countries. According to the official website of the European Commission, the signatures of Bulgaria and Romania in the accession agreement mark the end of the fifth EU enlargement.

EU accession criteria

To date, the accession process is accompanied by a number of formal steps, from the pre-accession treaty to the ratification of the final accession treaty. These steps are monitored by the European Commission (General Directorate for Enlargement), but actual negotiations are being held between the member states of the union and the candidate country. In theory, any European country can join the European Union. The EU Council consults with the Commission and the European Parliament and decides to start accession negotiations. The Board shall reject or approve the application only unanimously. To get the approval of the application, the country must meet the following criteria: it must be a "European state", must comply with the principles of freedom, democracy, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, the rule of law.

Membership requires the following: Compliance with the Copenhagen Criteria, recognized by the Council in 1993:

stability of institutions guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights, respect and protection of minorities; the existence of a functional market economy, as well as the ability to cope with competitive pressures and market prices within the Union; the ability to make commitments to membership including commitment to the political, economic and monetary goals of the union.

In December 1995, the Madrid Council of Europe revised the membership criteria to include conditions for the integration of a member state through appropriate regulation of its administrative structures: since it is important that EU legislation is reflected in national legislation, it is important that the revised national legislation is implemented effectively through appropriate administrative and judicial structures.

EU accession process

Before a country applies for membership, it usually needs to sign an associate membership agreement to help prepare the country for candidate and possibly member status. Many countries do not even meet the criteria necessary to start negotiations before they start to apply, so they need many years to get ready for the process. An associate membership agreement helps prepare for this first step.

In the case of the Western Balkans, a special process, Stabilization and Associative processes exist in order not to conflict with the circumstances. When a country formally requests membership, the Council asks the Commission for its views on the country's willingness to begin negotiations. The Council may accept or reject the opinion of the Commission.

The Council only once rejected the opinion of the Commission - in the case of Greece, when the Commission discouraged the Council from opening negotiations. If the council decides to open negotiations, the review process begins. It is a process during which the EU and the candidate country examine their own and EU laws, identifying existing differences. Thereafter, the Council recommends that negotiations begin on “chapters” of the law when it decides that there are sufficient points of contact for meaningful negotiations. Negotiations usually involve a candidate state trying to convince the EU that its laws and administration are sufficiently developed to implement European law, which can be implemented as deemed appropriate by the member states.

On December 17, 2005, the official status of a candidate for EU membership was granted to Macedonia. The date for the start of negotiations on accession with Croatia has been determined. A number of documents related to Turkey, Moldova and Ukraine were also signed, but the specific prospects for these states' accession to the EU are not yet clear. According to the statement of the EU Commissioner for Enlargement Oli Renn, Iceland, Croatia and Serbia may join the EU in 2010-2011. On April 28, 2008, Albania submitted an official application to join the EU. In Norway, EU membership referendums were held twice, in 1972 and 1994. In the first referendum, the main concerns were associated with the limitation of independence, in the second - with agriculture. In December 2011, an agreement was signed with Croatia on accession to the EU. In July 2013 Croatia became a member of the European Union. In 2009 Iceland applied to join the EU. On June 13, 2013, an official statement was made to withdraw the application for membership in the European Union.

Major events in the history of deepening EU integration

1951 - Treaty of Paris and the creation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) 1957 - The Treaty of Rome and the creation of the European Economic Communities (usually used in the singular) (EEC) and Euratom and a single Commission for the three European communities ECSC, EEC and Euratom 1973 - the first enlargement of the EEC (Denmark, Ireland, Great Britain joined) 1979 - the first national elections to the European Parliament 1981 - the second enlargement of the EEC (Greece joined) 1985 - the signing of the Schengen agreement 1986 - The single European act - the first significant change in the EU constituent treaties.

1992 - Maastricht Treaty and the creation of the European Union on the basis of the Communities 1999 - the introduction of a single European currency - the euro (in cash circulation since 2002) 2004 - the signing of the EU Constitution (not in force) 2007 - the signing of the Reform Treaty in Lisbon 2007 - the leaders of France, Italy and Spain announced the creation of a new organization - the Mediterranean Union 2007 - the second wave of the fifth expansion (joining Bulgaria and Romania). Celebrating the 50th anniversary of the creation of the EEC. 2013 - sixth expansion (Croatia joined)

Currently, the three most common attributes of belonging to the European Union (actually membership in the EU, the Schengen area and the euro area) are not inclusive, but intersecting categories: Great Britain and Ireland signed the Schengen agreement on terms of limited membership. Great Britain also did not consider it necessary to join the euro zone. Denmark and Sweden also decided to keep their national currencies in referendums. Norway, Iceland and Switzerland are not members of the EU, but are part of the Schengen zone. Montenegro and the partially recognized state of the Kosovar Albanians are not members of the EU. nor members of the Schengen Agreement, but the euro is the legal tender in these countries.

European Union economy

The economy of the European Union, according to the IMF, produces GDP in PPP terms of over € 12,256.48 trillion ($ 16,523.78 trillion in 2009). The EU economy is a single market and is represented in the WTO as a single organization. This represents over 21% of the world's production. This puts the Union's economy in first place in the world in terms of nominal GDP and second in terms of GDP in PPP. In addition, the Union is the largest exporter and largest importer of goods and services, as well as an important trading partner of several large countries, such as, for example, China and India. The head office of the 161st of the 500 largest companies in terms of revenue (according to Fortune Global 500 in 2010) is located in the EU. The unemployment rate in April 2010 was 9.7%, while the level of investment was 18.4% of GDP, inflation was 1.5%, the state budget deficit was -0 , 2%. Per capita income varies from state to state and ranges from $ 7,000 to $ 78,000. In the WTO, the EU economy is presented as a single organization.

After the global economic crisis of 2008-2009, the EU economy showed moderate GDP growth in 2010 and 2011, but the countries' debts increased in 2011, which became one of the main problems of the bloc. Despite the joint economic restructuring programs with the IMF in Greece, Ireland and Portugal, as well as the consolidation of measures in many other EU member states, significant risks to the economic growth of the countries remain at the moment, including high credit dependence of the population, an aging population. In 2011, the leaders of the Eurozone increased the amount of funding from the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF) This fund finances the EU member states most affected by the crisis. In addition, 25 of the 27 EU member states (excluding the UK and the Czech Republic) have announced their intention to cut government spending and adopt austerity programs. September 2012, the European Central Bank developed an incentive program for trans, which legally proved the introduction of an emergency economy regime in the country.

European Union currency

The official currency of the European Union is the euro, which is used in all documents and acts. The Stability and Growth Pact sets out tax criteria for maintaining stability and economic convergence. The Euro is also the most common currency in the EU, already in use in 17 member states known as the Eurozone.

All other Member States, with the exception of Denmark and the United Kingdom, which have special waivers, have committed to the changeover to the euro after they have met the requirements for the changeover. Sweden, although it refused, announced its possible accession to the European Exchange Rate Mechanism, which is a preliminary step towards accession. The rest of the states intend to join the euro through their accession treaties, making the euro the single currency for over 320 million Europeans. In December 2006, there were 610 billion euros in cash circulation, which made this currency the owner of the highest total value of cash circulating in the world, ahead of the US dollar.

European Union budget

The functioning of the EU in 2007 provided a budget of € 116 billion, and € 862 billion for the period 2007-2013, which is about 1% of the EU GDP. For comparison, the expenditures of Great Britain alone in 2004 were estimated at about € 759 billion and France, about € 801 billion. In 1960, the budget of the then EEC was only 0.03% of GDP.

Below is a table showing, respectively, GDP (PPP) and GDP (PPP) per capita in the European Union, and for each of the 28 member states separately, sorted by GDP (PPP) per capita. This can be used to roughly compare living standards between member states, Luxembourg has the highest and lowest in Bulgaria. Eurostat, based in Luxembourg, is the official statistical office of the European Communities that publishes annual data on GDP in member states as well as the EU as a whole, which are regularly updated to support the European fiscal and economic policy framework.

Economy of the member states of the European Union

Cost-effectiveness varies from state to state. The Stability and Growth Pact regulates fiscal policy with the European Union. It applies to all member states, with specific rules that apply to members of the eurozone stipulating that each state's budget deficit must not exceed 3% of GDP and public debt must not exceed 60% of GDP. Nonetheless, many large participants estimate their future budget with deficits well in excess of 3%, and the eurozone countries as a whole have debt in excess of 60 % The EU's share in the world's gross product (Gross Domestic Product) is stable at about one fifth. GDP growth, strong in the new member states, has now fallen due to sluggish growth in France, Italy and Portugal.

Thirteen new member states from Central and Eastern Europe have a higher average growth rate than their Western European counterparts. In particular, the Baltic countries have achieved rapid GDP growth, in Latvia it is up to 11%, which is at the level of the world leader China, whose average indicator is 9% over the past 25 years. The reasons for this massive growth are the government's pursuit of stable monetary policy, export-oriented policies, trade, a low fixed tax rate, and the use of relatively cheap labor. Per Last year(2008), Romania had the largest GDP growth of any EU member state.

The current map of GDP growth in the EU is most contrasting across regions, where strong economies are suffering from stagnation, while the new member states are experiencing robust economic growth.

In general, the influence of the EU27 on the increase in the gross world product is decreasing due to the emergence of economic powers such as China, India and Brazil. In the medium to long term, the EU will look for ways to boost GDP growth in Central European countries such as France, Germany and Italy and to stabilize growth in the emerging Central and Eastern European countries to ensure sustainable economic prosperity.

EU Energy Policy

The European Union has large reserves of coal, oil and natural gas. According to 2010 data, the gross domestic energy consumption of the 28 member states amounted to 1.759 billion tonnes of oil equivalent. About 47.7% of the energy consumed was produced in the participating countries, while 52.3% was imported, while nuclear energy is considered primary in the calculations, despite the fact that only 3% of the uranium used is mined in the European Union. The degree of dependence of the Union on imports of oil and petroleum products is 84.6%, natural gas - 64.3%. According to the EIA (USA Energy Information Administration) forecasts, own gas production in European countries will decline by 0.9% per year, which will amount to 60 billion m3 by 2035. Gas demand will grow by 0.5% per year, the annual growth of gas imports to the EU countries in the long term will amount to 1.6%. To reduce dependence on pipeline supplies of natural gas, a special role as a diversification tool is assigned to liquefied gas. natural gas.

Since its inception, the European Union has had legislative power in the field of energy policy; it goes back to the European Coal and Steel Community. The introduction of a mandatory and comprehensive energy policy was approved at the European Council meeting in October 2005, and the first draft of the new policy was published in January 2007. The main objectives of the unified energy policy: change the structure of energy consumption in favor of renewable sources, increase energy efficiency, reduce emissions greenhouse gases, the creation of a single energy market and the promotion of competition in it.

There are six oil producers in the European Union, mainly in the North Sea oil fields. The United Kingdom is by far the largest producer, but Denmark, Germany, Italy, Romania and the Netherlands also produce oil. Considered as a whole, which is not accepted in the oil markets, the European Union is the 7th largest oil producer in the world, producing 3,424,000 (2001) barrels per day. However, it is also the 2nd largest consumer of oil, consuming much more than it can produce at 14,590,000 (2001) barrels per day.

All EU countries have pledged to abide by the Kyoto Protocol, and the European Union is one of its most active supporters. The European Commission published proposals for the first comprehensive EU energy policy on 10 January 2007.

European Union Trade Policy

The European Union is the world's largest exporter () and the second largest importer. Internal trade between member states is facilitated by the elimination of barriers such as tariffs and border controls. In the eurozone, trade is also helped by having a single currency among the majority of members. The Association Agreement of the European Union does something similar for a wider range of countries, in part as a so-called soft approach ("carrot instead of a stick") to influence policy in those countries.

The European Union represents the interests of all its members in the World Trade Organization, and acts on behalf of the member states in resolving any disputes.

Agriculture EU

The agricultural sector is supported by subsidies from the European Union under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). This currently accounts for 40% of the total EU spending, which guarantees minimum prices for farmers in the EU. It has been criticized as a form of protectionism that hinders trade and harms developing countries.One of its fiercest opponents is the UK, the bloc's second-largest economy, which has repeatedly refused to give an annual UK rebate unless significant reforms are made to the CAP. France, the bloc's third-largest economy, is the most ardent supporter of the CAP. The Common Agricultural Policy is the oldest of the programs of the European Economic Community, its cornerstone. The policy aims to increase agricultural productivity, ensure a stable food supply, ensure a decent standard of living for the agricultural population, stabilize markets, as well as ensuring reasonable prices for products. Until recently, it was carried out through subsidies and market intervention. In the 70s and 80s, about two thirds of the budget of the European Community was allocated for the needs of agricultural policy, for 2007-2013 the share of this expenditure item decreased to 34%

European Union tourism

The European Union is a major tourist destination that attracts visitors from outside the EU as well as citizens traveling within it. Domestic tourism is more convenient for citizens of some EU member states that are members of the Schengen Agreement and the Eurozone.

All citizens of the European Union are entitled to travel to any member country without the need for a visa. If we look at individual countries, France is the world leader in the attractiveness of foreign tourists, followed by Spain, Italy and the United Kingdom, which occupy the 2nd, 5th and 6th places, respectively. Considering the EU as a whole, the number of foreign tourists is smaller, as most of the travelers are domestic tourists from other member states.

European Union companies

The countries of the European Union are home to many of the world's largest multinational companies, as well as home to their headquarters. They also include the world's # 1 companies in their industry, such as Allianz, which is the world's largest financial services provider; Airbus, which produces about half of the world's jet airliners; Air France-KLM, which is the world's largest airline in terms of total operating income; Amorim, leader in cork handling; ArcelorMittal, the world's largest steel company, the Danone Group, # 1 in the dairy market; Anheuser-Busch InBev, largest manufacturer beer; Group L "Oreal, a leading cosmetics manufacturer; LVMH, the largest luxury goods conglomerate; Nokia Corporation, the world's largest manufacturer of mobile phones; Royal Dutch Shell, one of the world's largest energy corporations, and Stora Enso, which is the world's largest pulp and paper mill in terms of production capacity. A number of the largest companies in the financial sector are also operating in the EU, in particular HSBC - and Grupo Santander are the largest companies in terms of market capitalization.

One of the most widely used methods of measuring income inequality today is the Gini coefficient. It is a measure of income inequality on a scale of 0 to 1. On this scale, 0 represents perfect equality for everyone with the same income and 1 represents absolute one-person inequality of all income. According to the UN, the Gini coefficient varies by country from 0.247 in Denmark to 0.743 in Namibia. Most post-industrial countries have a Gini coefficient ranging from 0.25 to 0.40.

Comparing the richest regions in the EU can be difficult. This is because the NUTS-1 and NUTS-2 regions are heterogeneous, some of them very large, such as NUTS-1 Hesse (21,100 km²), or NUTS-1 Ile-de-France (12,011 km²), while while other regions of NUTS are much smaller, for example NUTS-1 Hamburg (755 km²), or NUTS-1 Greater London (1580 km²). An extreme example is Finland, which is divided for historical reasons into the mainland with 5.3 million inhabitants and the Åland Islands, with a population of 26,700, which is approximately equal to the population of a small Finnish city.

One problem with this data is that in some areas, including Greater London, there is a large number of Pendulum Migration coming into the region, thus artificially increasing the numbers. This entails an increase in GDP without changing the number of people living in the area, increasing GDP per capita. Similar problems can cause a large number of tourists visiting the area. This data is used to identify regions that are supported by organizations such as the European Regional Development Fund. It was decided to delineate the nomenclature of territorial units for statistical purposes (NUTS) regions, in an arbitrary way (i.e. that is, not based on objective criteria and not uniform for the whole of Europe), which was adopted at the pan-European level.

The top 10 NUTS-1 and NUTS-2 regions with the highest GDP per capita are among the first fifteen countries in the bloc: and none of the 12 new member countries that joined in May 2004 and January 2007. NUTS regulations set a minimum a population of 3 million, and a maximum size of 7 million for the average NUTS-1 region, and a minimum of 800,000 and a maximum of 3 million for the NUTS-2 region. This definition, however, is not recognized by Eurostat. For example, the Ile-de-France region, with a population of 11.6 million, is considered the NUTS-2 region, while Bremen, with a population of only 664,000, is considered the NUTS-1 region. Economically weak NUTS-2 regions.

Bulgaria, Poland and Romania were among the fifteen lowest-ranked regions in 2004, with the lowest recorded at Nord-Este in Romania (25% of the average), followed by Northwest, Yuzhen central and Severen central in Bulgaria (all 25 -28%). Among the 68 regions below 75% of the average, fifteen were in Poland, seven each in Romania and the Czech Republic, six in Bulgaria, Greece and Hungary, five in Italy, four in France (all overseas departments) and Portugal, three in Slovakia , one in Spain and the others in the countries of Slovenia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

Organizational structure of the EU

The temple structure, as a way to visually present the existing specifics of the delineation of the competences of the EU and the member states, appeared in the Maastricht Treaty, which establishes the European Union. The temple structure is “supported” by three “pillars”: The first pillar “European Communities” brings together the predecessors of the EU: the European Community (formerly the European Economic Community) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom). The third organization, the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), ceased to exist in 2002 in accordance with the Treaty of Paris that established it. The second pillar is called the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP). The third pillar is police and judicial cooperation. on criminal cases ".

With the help of “pillars”, the treaties delimit policy areas that fall within the purview of the EU. In addition, the pillars provide a visual representation of the role of EU Member State governments and EU institutions in the decision-making process. Within the framework of the first pillar, the role of EU institutions is decisive. Decisions here are made by the "community method". The Community is responsible for issues related to, inter alia, the common market, the customs union, the common currency (while maintaining their own currency by some of the members), the common agricultural policy and the common fisheries policy, certain issues of migration and refugees, as well as the cohesion policy ). In the second and third pillars, the role of EU institutions is minimal and decisions are made by the EU member states.

This decision-making method is called intergovernmental. As a result of the Nice Treaty (2001), some issues of migration and refugees, as well as issues of gender equality in the workplace, were moved from the second to the first pillar. Consequently, on these issues, the role of EU institutions in relation to the EU member states has increased. Today, the membership in the European Union, the European Community and Euratom is one, all states joining the Union become members of the Communities. According to the 2007 Lisbon Treaty, this complex system will be abolished , a single status of the European Union as a subject of international law will be established.

European institutions of the EU

The following is a description of the main bodies or institutions of the EU. It should be borne in mind that the traditional division of states into legislative, executive and judicial bodies is not typical for the EU. If the Court of Justice of the EU can be safely considered a judicial body, then legislative functions belong simultaneously to the Council of the EU, the European Commission and the European Parliament, and executive functions belong to the Commission and the Council.

The highest political body of the EU, consisting of the heads of state and government of the member states and their deputy foreign ministers. The President of the European Commission is also a member of the European Council. The creation of the European Council was based on the idea of ​​the French President Charles de Gaulle to hold informal summits of the leaders of the states of the European Union, which was intended to prevent a decrease in the role of national states in the framework of integration education. Informal summits have been held since 1961; in 1974, at the Paris summit, this practice was formalized at the suggestion of Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, who was then President of France.

The Council determines the main strategic directions for the EU's development. Working out a general line of political integration is the main mission of the European Council. Along with the Council of Ministers, the European Council has a political function to amend the fundamental treaties of European integration. It meets at least twice a year, either in Brussels or in the presiding state under the chairmanship of the representative of the member state who leads the the given time Council of the European Union. The meetings last two days. Council decisions are binding on the states that supported them. Within the framework of the European Council, the so-called "ceremonial" leadership is carried out, when the presence of politicians of the highest level gives the decision taken both significance and high legitimacy. Since the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, that is, since December 2009, the European Council has officially entered the structure of EU institutions. The provisions of the agreement established new position the President of the European Council, who takes part in all meetings of the heads of state and government of the EU member states. The European Council should be distinguished from the Council of the EU and from the Council of Europe.

The Council of the European Union (officially the Council, usually informally referred to as the Council of Ministers) is, along with the European Parliament, one of the Union's two legislative bodies and one of its seven institutions. The Council consists of 28 ministers of the governments of the member states in the composition, depending on the discussed range of issues. At the same time, despite the different compositions, the Council is considered a single body. In addition to legislative powers, the Council also has some executive functions in the area of ​​common foreign and security policy.

The Council is composed of the foreign ministers of the member states of the European Union. However, the practice of convening the Council consisting of other, sectoral ministers has developed: economy and finance, justice and internal affairs, agriculture, etc. Council decisions have the same force regardless of the specific composition that made the decision. The presidency of the Council of Ministers is exercised by the EU member states in a manner unanimously determined by the Council (usually rotation is based on the principle of large - small state, founder - new member, etc.). Rotation occurs every six months. In the early days of the European Community, most Council decisions required a unanimous decision. Gradually, the method of making decisions with a qualified majority of votes is gaining more and more use. Moreover, each state has a certain number of votes, depending on its population and economic potential.

Under the auspices of the Council, there are numerous working groups on specific issues. Their task is to prepare the decisions of the Council and control the European Commission if certain powers of the Council are delegated to it. Starting with the Paris Treaty, there is a tendency of selective delegation of powers from nation states (directly or through the Council of Ministers) to the European Commission. The signing of new "package" agreements added new competencies to the European Union, which entailed the delegation of large executive powers to the European Commission. However, the European Commission is not free to implement policy; in certain areas, national governments have instruments of control over its activities. Another trend is the strengthening of the role of the European Parliament. It should be noted that despite the evolution made by the European Parliament from a purely advisory body to an institution that received the right of joint decision and even approval, the powers of the European Parliament are still severely limited. Therefore, the balance of power in the EU institutions remains in favor of the Council of Ministers. Delegation of powers from the European Council is highly selective and does not jeopardize the importance of the Council of Ministers.

The European Commission is the highest executive body of the European Union. Consists of 27 members, one from each member state. In the exercise of their powers, they are independent, act only in the interests of the EU, and have no right to engage in any other activity. Member states have no right to influence the members of the European Commission. The European Commission is formed every 5 years as follows. The EU Council at the level of heads of state and / or government proposes the candidacy of the President of the European Commission, which is approved by the European Parliament. Further, the EU Council together with the candidate for the presidency of the Commission form the proposed composition of the European Commission, taking into account the wishes of the member states. The composition of the "cabinet" must be approved by the European Parliament and finally approved by the EU Council. Each member of the Commission is responsible for a specific area of ​​EU policy and heads the respective unit (the so-called Directorate General).

The Commission plays a major role in ensuring the day-to-day activities of the EU to implement the fundamental Treaties. She comes up with legislative initiatives, and after approval controls their implementation. In case of violation of EU legislation, the Commission has the right to resort to sanctions, including appeal to the European Court. The Commission has significant autonomous powers in various policy areas, including agrarian, trade, competition, transport, regional, etc. The Commission has an executive body and also manages the budget and various funds and programs of the European Union (such as the Tacis program) The main working languages ​​of the Commission are English, French and German. The headquarters of the European Commission is located in Brussels.

EU European Parliament

The European Parliament is an assembly of 732 MPs (as amended by the Nice Treaty), directly elected by the citizens of the EU member states for a term of five years. The President of the European Parliament is elected for two and a half years. Members of the European Parliament do not unite according to nationality, but in accordance with political orientation. The main role of the European Parliament is to approve the EU budget. In addition, almost any decision of the EU Council requires either the approval of Parliament, or at least a request for its opinion. Parliament controls the work of the Commission and has the right to dissolve it (which, however, it never used). The approval of the Parliament is required when accepting new members to the Union, as well as when concluding agreements on associate membership and trade agreements with third countries.

The last elections to the European Parliament were held in 2009. The European Parliament holds plenary sessions in Strasbourg and Brussels. The European Parliament was established in 1957. Members were originally appointed by the parliaments of the EU member states. Since 1979 he has been elected by the population. Parliamentary elections are held every 5 years. MEPs are divided into party factions, which represent international party associations. Chaired by Buzek Jerzy. The European Parliament is one of the five governing bodies of the European Union. It directly represents the population of the European Union. Since the founding of Parliament in 1952, its powers have been continuously expanded, especially as a result of the Maastricht Treaty in 1992 and, most recently, the Nice Treaty in 2001. However, the competence of the European Parliament is still narrower than that of the national legislatures of most states.

The European Parliament sits in Strasbourg, other seats are Brussels and Luxembourg. On July 20, 2004, the European Parliament was elected for a sixth term. At first, 732 parliamentarians sat in it, and after Romania and Bulgaria joined the European Union on January 15, 2007, there were 785 of them. The chairman of the second half-term is Hans Gert Pottering. Currently, 7 factions are represented in parliament, as well as a number of non-party delegates. In their home states, parliamentarians are members of about 160 different parties that have formed factions in the pan-European political arena. Since the seventh electoral period 2009-2014 The European Parliament must again consist of 736 delegates (according to Art. 190 EG-Treaty); The Lisbon Treaty sets the number of parliamentarians at 750 people, including the chairman. The principles of organization and operation of the body are contained in the Regulation of the European Parliament.

History of the European Parliament of the EU

From 10 to 13 September 1952, the first meeting of the ECSC (European Coal and Steel Community) was held, with 78 representatives elected from among the national parliaments. This assembly had only advisory powers, but also had the right to dismiss the highest executive bodies of the ECSC. In 1957, as a result of the signing of the Treaty of Rome, the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Community were founded. The Parliamentary Assembly, which at that time consisted of 142 representatives, belonged to all three communities. Despite the fact that the assembly did not receive any new powers, nevertheless, it began to call itself the European Parliament - a name that was recognized by independent states. When the European Union found its budget in 1971, the European Parliament began to participate in its planning - in all its aspects, except for the planning of expenditures for the common agricultural policy, which, at that time, accounted for about 90% of expenditures. This apparent senselessness of parliament even led to the fact that in the 70s there was a joke: “Send your old grandfather to sit in the European Parliament” (“Hast du einen Opa, schick ihn nach Europa”).

Since the 1980s, the situation has begun to change gradually. The first direct elections to parliament in 1976 were not yet associated with the expansion of its powers, but already in 1986, after the signing of the Common European Act, the parliament began to take part in the legislative process and could now officially make proposals to amend the bills, although the last word still remained behind the European Council. This condition was abolished as a result of the next step to expand the competence of the European Parliament - the 1992 Maastricht Treaty, which equalized the rights of the European Parliament and the European Council. Although parliament still could not push bills against the will of the European Council, this was a great achievement as now no important decision could be made without the participation of parliament. In addition, the parliament received the right to form the Investigative Committee, which significantly expanded its control functions.

As a result of the reforms of Amsterdam 1997 and Nice 2001, parliament began to play a larger role in the political sphere of Europe. In some important areas, such as the Common European Agricultural Policy, or the joint work of the police and the judiciary, the European Parliament still does not have full powers. However, together in the European Council, it occupies a strong position in legislation. The European Parliament has three major tasks: legislation, budgeting and oversight of the European Commission . The European Parliament shares legislative functions with the EU Council, which also adopts laws (directives, orders, decisions). Since the signing of the treaty in Nice, in most political areas, the so-called principle of joint decisions (Article 251 of the EU-Treaty) has been in effect, according to which the European Parliament and the Council of Europe have equal powers, and each bill submitted by the Commission must be considered in 2x readings. Disagreements must be resolved during the 3rd reading.

In general, this system resembles the division of legislative power in Germany between the Bundestag and the Bundesrat. However, the European Parliament, unlike the Bundestag, does not have the right to initiative, in other words, it cannot introduce its own bills. Only the European Commission has this right in the European political arena. The European Constitution and the Lisbon Treaty do not provide for the expansion of initiative powers for parliament, although the Lisbon Treaty still allows, in exceptional cases, a situation where a group of EU member states submits bills for consideration.

In addition to the system of mutual lawmaking, there are also two more forms of legal regulation (agrarian policy and anti-monopoly competition), where the parliament has less voting rights. This circumstance after the Nice Treaty applies only to one political sphere, and after the Lisbon Treaty it should disappear altogether.

The European Parliament and the Council of the EU jointly form a budget commission, which forms the EU budget (for example, in 2006 it amounted to about € 113 billion)

Substantial budgetary policy constraints are imposed by the so-called "Mandatory Expenditures" (ie, expenditures associated with joint agricultural policy), which account for almost 40% of the total European budget. The powers of the Parliament in the direction of "Obligatory expenditures" are severely limited. The Lisbon Treaty should bridge the gap between “Mandatory” and “optional” spending and give the European Parliament the same budgeting rights as the Council of the EU

Parliament also oversees the activities of the European Commission. The plenary session of the Parliament must approve the composition of the Commission. Parliament has the right to accept or reject the Commission only in its entirety, and not its individual members. The Parliament does not appoint the Chairman of the Commission (in contrast to the rules in force in most national parliaments of the EU member states), it can only accept or reject the candidacy proposed by the Council of Europe. In addition, the Parliament can, through a 2/3 majority, put forward a vote of no confidence in the Commission, rather than cause its resignation.

The European Parliament used this right, for example, in 2004, when the Commission of Free Cities spoke out against the contested candidacy of Rocco Butiglione for the post of Commissioner for Justice. Then the Social Democratic, Liberal and Green factions threatened to dissolve the Commission, after which Franco Frattini was appointed to the post of Commissioner of Justice instead of Butglione. Parliament can also exercise control over the Council of Europe and the European Commission by establishing a committee of inquiry. This right especially affects those areas of politics where the executive functions of these institutions are large, and where the legislative rights of parliament are significantly limited.

European Union Court of Justice

The European Court of Justice (officially the Court of Justice of the European Communities) meets in Luxembourg and is the highest court of the EU. The Court adjusts disputes between member states; between Member States and the European Union itself; between EU institutions; between the EU and natural or legal persons, including employees of its organs (for this function, the Civil Service Tribunal was recently created). The court gives opinions on international agreements; it also makes preliminary (prejudicial) rulings at the request of national courts on the interpretation of the founding treaties and EU regulations. The decisions of the Court of Justice of the EU are binding on the territory of the EU. By general rule The jurisdiction of the Court of Justice of the EU extends to the areas of competence of the EU.

The Court of Auditors was established in 1975 to audit the budget of the EU and its institutions. Composition. The House is composed of representatives of the member states (one from each member state). They are appointed by the Council by unanimous decision for a six-year term and are completely independent in the performance of their duties. Functions: 1. checks the income and expenditure reports of the EU and all its institutions and bodies with access to EU funds; 2. monitors the quality of financial management; 3. after the end of each financial year, draw up a report on its work, and also submit to the European Parliament and the Council conclusions or comments on specific issues; 5. helps the European Parliament to monitor the execution of the EU budget. Headquarters - Luxembourg.

European Central Bank

The European Central Bank was formed in 1998 from banks of 11 EU countries that make up the eurozone (Germany, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, Austria, Portugal, Finland, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg). Greece, which introduced the euro on January 1, 2001, became the twelfth country in the euro area. The European Central Bank is the central bank of the European Union and the euro area. Formed on June 1, 1998. The headquarters is located in the German city of Frankfurt am Main. Its staff includes representatives from all EU member states. The bank is completely independent from the rest of the EU authorities.

The main functions of the bank: development and implementation of the currency policy of the euro area; maintenance and management of official exchange reserves of the euro area countries; emission of euro banknotes; setting basic interest rates .; maintaining price stability in the eurozone, that is, ensuring inflation does not exceed 2%. The European Central Bank is the "successor" of the European Monetary Institute (EMI), which played a leading role in preparing for the introduction of the euro in 1999. The European system of central banks consists of from the ECB and national central banks: Banque Nationale de Belgique, governor Guy Quaden; Bundesbank, governor Axel A. Weber; Bank of Greece, governor Nicholas C. Garganas; Bank of Spain, governed by Miguel Fernández Ordóñez; Banque de France, governed by Christian Noyer; Monetary Institute of Luxembourg.

All key issues related to the activities of the European Central Bank, such as discount rate, accounting of bills and others, are decided by the Directorate and the Board of Governors of the Bank, which consists of six people, including the President of the ECB and the Deputy Chairman of the ECB. Nominations are proposed by the Board of Governors, approved by the European Parliament and the heads of state of the eurozone.

The Governing Council consists of members of the ECB Directorate and the governors of the national central banks. Traditionally, four of the six seats are held by representatives of the four major central banks: France, Germany, Italy and Spain, with only members of the Board of Governors present in person or by teleconference voting. A member of the Board of Governors can appoint a replacement if he is unable to attend meetings for a long time.

Voting requires the presence of 2/3 of the Council members, however, an emergency ECB meeting may be convened, for which no threshold is set. Decisions are taken by a simple majority, in case of equality of votes, the vote of the Chairman has more weight. Decisions on the capital of the ECB, distribution of profits, etc. are also decided by voting, the weight of votes is proportional to the shares of national banks in the authorized capital of the ECB. 8 of the Treaty establishing the European Community, the European System of Central Banks was founded - a supranational financial regulatory body that unites the European Central Bank (ECB) and the national central banks of all 27 EU member states. The ESCB is governed by the governing bodies of the ECB.

Created in accordance with the Treaty, on the basis of capital provided by the member countries. The EIB is endowed with the functions of a commercial bank, operates in the international financial markets, and provides loans to government agencies of member countries.

EU Economic and Social Committee and other departments

The Economic and Social Committee is an advisory body to the EU. Formed in accordance with the Treaty of Rome. Composition. Consists of 344 members called advisers.

Functions. Consults the Council and the Commission on the issues of social and economic policy of the EU. Represents various spheres of the economy and social groups (employers, people of hired labor and liberal professions employed in industry, agriculture, the service sector, as well as representatives public organizations).

The members of the Committee are appointed by the Council by unanimous decision for a period of 4 years. The Committee elects a Chairperson from among its members for a term of 2 years. After the admission of new states to the EU, the number of the Committee will not exceed 350 people.

Place of meetings. The committee meets once a month in Brussels.

The Committee of the Regions is an advisory body providing representation of regional and local administrations in the work of the EU. The committee was established in accordance with the Maastricht Treaty and has been in effect since March 1994. It consists of 344 members representing regional and local bodies, but completely independent in the performance of their duties. The number of members from each country is the same as in the Economic and Social Committee. Nominations are approved by the Council by unanimous decision on the proposals of the Member States for a period of 4 years. The Committee elects a Chairperson and other officers from among its members for a period of 2 years.

Functions. Provides advice to the Council and the Commission and gives opinions on all issues affecting the interests of the regions. Venue of sessions. Plenary sessions are held in Brussels 5 times a year. Also EU institutions are the European Ombudsman Institute, which deals with citizens' complaints about mismanagement of any EU institution or body. The decisions of this body are not binding, but they have significant social and political influence. As well as 15 specialized agencies and bodies, the European Monitoring Center for Combating Racism and Xenophobia, Europol, Eurojust.

European Union law

A feature of the European Union that distinguishes it from other international organizations is the existence of its own law, which directly regulates the relations not only of the member states, but also of their citizens and legal entities. EU law consists of the so-called primary, secondary and tertiary (decisions of the Court of Justice of the European Communities). Primary law - EU constituent treaties; agreements making changes to them (revision agreements); accession treaties for new member states. Secondary law - acts issued by EU bodies. The decisions of the Court of Justice of the EU and other judicial bodies of the Union are widely used as case law.

EU law has a direct effect on the territory of the EU countries and has priority in relation to the national legislation of the states.

EU law is subdivided into institutional law (rules governing the creation and functioning of EU institutions and bodies) and substantive law (rules governing the process of realizing the goals of the EU and the EU communities). The substantive law of the EU, like the law of individual countries, can be subdivided into sectors: EU customs law, EU environmental law, EU transport law, EU tax law, etc. Taking into account the structure of the EU (“three pillars”), EU law is also subdivided into European law. communities, Schengen law, etc. The main achievement of EU law can be considered the institution of four freedoms: freedom of movement of persons, freedom of movement of capital, freedom of movement of goods and freedom of provision of services in these countries.

Languages ​​of the European Union

23 languages ​​are officially used in European institutions: English, Bulgarian, Hungarian, Greek, Danish, Irish, Spanish, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, German, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, Finnish, French, Czech , Swedish, Estonian. At the working level, as a rule, English and French are used.

Official languages ​​of the European Union are languages ​​that are official in the activities of the European Union (EU). All decisions made by EU authorities are translated into all official languages, and EU citizens have the right to contact EU authorities and receive a response to their inquiries in any of the official languages.

At high-level events, efforts are being made to translate the participants' statements into all official languages ​​(as required). Simultaneous translation into all official languages, in particular, is always carried out at sessions of the European Parliament and the Council of the European Union. Despite the declared equality of all languages ​​of the Union, with the expansion of the EU borders, “European bilingualism” is increasingly observed, when in fact, in the work of instances (with the exception of official events) mainly English, French and, to a lesser extent, German (the three working languages ​​of the Commission) are used, with some other languages ​​being used depending on the situation. In connection with the expansion of the EU and the entry into it of countries where French is less common, the positions of English and German have strengthened. Anyway, all are final regulations are translated into other official languages.

In 2005, about 800 million euros were spent to pay for the work of translators. Back in 2004, this amount was 540 million euros. The European Union stimulates the spread of multilingualism among the inhabitants of the participating countries. This is done not only to ensure mutual understanding, but also to develop a tolerant and respectful attitude towards linguistic and cultural diversity in the EU. Measures to promote multilingualism include the annual European Day of Languages, language courses available, promotion of more than one foreign language learning and language learning in adulthood.

Russian is the native language of over 1.3 million people in the Baltic states, as well as a small part of the German population. The older generation of the population of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania mainly understands Russian and speaks it, since in the USSR it was compulsory for studying in schools and universities. Also, Russian is understood by many older people in Eastern Europe, where it is not native to the population.

Debt crisis of the European Union and measures to overcome it

The European debt crisis or the crisis of sovereign debt in a number of European countries is a debt crisis that first hit the peripheral countries of the European Union (Greece, Ireland) in 2010, and then covered almost the entire euro area. The crisis of the government bonds market in Greece in autumn 2009 is called the source of the crisis. For some eurozone countries, it has become difficult or impossible to refinance public debt without the help of intermediaries.

Since the end of 2009, due to the growth of public and private sector debt around the world and the simultaneous downgrade of the credit ratings of a number of EU countries, investors began to fear the development of a debt crisis. V different countries Various reasons led to the development of the debt crisis: somewhere, the crisis was caused by the provision of emergency government assistance to companies in the banking sector that were on the verge of bankruptcy due to the growth of market bubbles, or the government's attempts to stimulate the economy after market bubbles burst. In Greece, the increase in the size of the public debt was caused by the wasteful high wages of civil servants and the significant size of pension payments for 347 days. The development of the crisis was also facilitated by the structure of the eurozone (currency, not the fiscal union), which also negatively affected the ability of the leaders of European countries to respond to the development of the crisis: the eurozone member states have a single currency, but there is no common tax and pension legislation.

It is noteworthy that due to the fact that European banks own a significant share of government bonds of countries, doubts about the solvency of individual countries lead to doubts about the solvency of their banking sector and vice versa. Beginning in 2010, investor fears began to intensify. On May 9, 2010, finance ministers of the leading European countries reacted to the changing investment environment by creating the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF) with 750 billion euros of resources to ensure financial stability in Europe through the implementation of a number of anti-crisis measures. In October 2011 and February 2012, the leaders of the eurozone agreed on measures to prevent an economic collapse, including an agreement on the cancellation by banks of 53.5% of the debt obligations of the Greek government owned by private creditors, an increase in the amount of funds from the European Financial Stability Fund to about € 1 trillion, as well as an increase in the level of capitalization of European banks to 9%.

Also, in order to increase investor confidence, representatives of the leading countries of the EU concluded an agreement on fiscal stability (en: European Fiscal Compact), under which the government of each country assumed obligations to amend the constitution to oblige a balanced budget. As the volume of government bond issuance increased significantly only in a few eurozone countries, the growth of government debt began to be perceived as a common problem for all EU countries as a whole. Nevertheless, the European currency remains stable. The three countries most affected by the crisis (Greece, Ireland and Portugal) account for 6 percent of the eurozone's gross domestic product (GDP). In June 2012, Spain's debt crisis came to the fore among the eurozone's economic woes. This led to a sharp increase in the rate of return on Spanish government bonds and significantly limited the country's access to capital markets, which led to the need for financial assistance to Spanish banks and a number of other measures.

On May 9, 2010, finance ministers of the leading European countries reacted to the changing investment environment by creating the European Financial Stability Fund (EFSF) with 750 billion euros of resources to ensure financial stability in Europe through the implementation of a number of anti-crisis measures. In October 2011 and February 2012, the leaders of the eurozone agreed on measures to prevent an economic collapse, including an agreement on the cancellation by banks of 53.5% of the debt obligations of the Greek government owned by private creditors, an increase in the amount of funds from the European Financial Stability Fund to about € 1 trillion, as well as an increase in the level of capitalization of European banks to 9%. Also, in order to increase investor confidence, representatives of the leading countries of the EU concluded an agreement on fiscal stability (en: European Fiscal Compact), under which the government of each country assumed the obligation to amend the constitution to oblige a balanced budget.

While the issuance of government bonds increased significantly only in a few countries of the eurozone, the growth of government debt began to be perceived as a common problem for all EU countries as a whole. Nevertheless, the European currency remains stable. The three countries most affected by the crisis (Greece, Ireland and Portugal) account for 6 percent of the eurozone's gross domestic product (GDP). In June 2012, Spain's debt crisis came to the fore among the eurozone's economic woes. This led to a sharp increase in the rate of return on Spanish government bonds and significantly limited the country's access to capital markets, which led to the need for financial assistance to Spanish banks and a number of other measures.

Sources for the article "European Union"

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osvita.eu - Information Agency for the European Union

eulaw.edu.ru - Official website of the European Union

referatwork.ru - European Union Law

euobserver.com - A news site specialized in the European Union

euractiv.com - EU Policy News

jazyki.ru - EU Language Portal

Name:

European Union, European Union, EU, EU

Flag / Coat of Arms:

Status:

regional economic and political union of states

Structural units:

The European Commission (CES, Commission of the European Communities) is the highest executive body of the European Union. Also has derivative legislative powers. The President of the CES is also a member of the Council of Heads of Industrial States.

Activities The task of the European Commission is to coordinate the work of the executive authorities of all EU countries, develop recommendations for the activities of the European Parliament, introduce legislative initiatives in order to bring the national legislation of the EU member states in line with European standards, monitor compliance by all 25 countries with uniform European standards, as well as rights and human freedoms, conducting systematic consultations with all national governments to develop a single economic (industrial, agricultural, fiscal, social, customs, foreign exchange, monetary, etc.), military, foreign, cultural policy.

The European Commission primarily contacts the ministers for EU affairs in each of the governments of the 25 member countries.

All decisions of the European Commission are of an exclusively recommendatory nature, all controversial issues are settled at the level of national governments.

Official languages:

English, Bulgarian, Hungarian, Greek, Danish, Irish, Spanish, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, German, Dutch, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovenian, Finnish, French, Czech, Swedish, Estonian

Participating countries:

Belgium, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, France, Great Britain, Denmark, Ireland, Greece, Portugal, Spain, Austria, Finland, Sweden, Hungary, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Bulgaria, Romania

History:

On the territory of Europe, the Western Roman Empire, the Frankish state, and the Holy Roman Empire were unified state entities comparable in size to the European Union. During the last millennium, Europe has been fragmented. European thinkers tried to come up with a way to unify Europe. The idea of ​​creating the United States of Europe originally arose after the American Revolution.

This idea was given new life after World War II, when Winston Churchill declared the need for its implementation, who called on September 19, 1946 in his speech at the University of Zurich for the creation of a "United States of Europe" similar to the United States of America. As a result, in 1949 the Council of Europe was created - an organization that still exists (Russia is also a member of it). The Council of Europe, however, was (and remains) something of a regional equivalent of the UN, focusing its activities on the problems of ensuring human rights in European countries.

1952-58 - European Coal and Steel Community.

In 1951, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Italy created the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), the purpose of which was to unite European resources for the production of steel and coal, which, according to its founders, should have prevent another war in Europe. Great Britain refused to participate in this organization for reasons of national sovereignty.

In order to deepen economic integration, the same six states in 1957 established the European Economic Community (EEC, Common Market) (EEC - European Economic Community) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom - European Atomic Energy Community). The EEC was created primarily as a customs union of six states, designed to ensure the freedom of movement of goods, services, capital and people. Euratom was supposed to contribute to the unification of the peaceful nuclear resources of these states. The most important of these three European communities was the European Economic Community, so later (in the 1990s) it became known simply as the European Community (EC - European Community). The EEC was established by the 1957 Treaty of Rome, which entered into force on January 1, 1958. In 1959, the EEC members created the European Parliament - a representative consultative and later legislative body.

The process of development and transformation of these European communities into the modern European Union took place through simultaneous structural evolution and institutional transformation into a more cohesive block of states with the transfer of an increasing number of management functions to the supranational level (the so-called process of European integration, or deepening of the union of states), on the one hand, and an increase in the number of members of the European communities (and later the European Union) from 6 to 25 states (enlargement of the union of states).

In January 1960 Great Britain and a number of other countries not included in the EEC formed an alternative organization - the European Free Trade Association. The UK, however, soon realized that the EEC was a much more efficient union and decided to join the EEC. Ireland and Denmark followed suit, whose economies relied heavily on trade with Great Britain. Norway made a similar decision.

1973 - 9 member countries. Great Britain, Denmark (with Greenland, but without the Faroe Islands) and Ireland join. Greenland left the organization in 1985.

The first attempt in 1961-1963, however, ended in failure due to the fact that the French President de Gaulle vetoed the decision to join the new members of the EEC. The same was the result of negotiations for accession in 1966-1967.

In 1967, three European communities (the European Coal and Steel Community, the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Community) merged into the European Community.

The matter got off the ground only after General Charles de Gaulle was replaced by Georges Pompidou in 1969. After several years of negotiations and adaptation of legislation, Great Britain joined the EU on January 1, 1973. In 1972, referendums on EU accession were held in Ireland, Denmark and Norway. The population of Ireland (83.1%) and Denmark (63.3%) supported accession to the EU, but in Norway this proposal did not receive a majority (46.5%).

1981 - 10 member states. Greece joins.

1985 - Greenland leaves the EEC. 1986 - 12 member states. Spain and Portugal join.

In 1979, the first direct elections to the European Parliament were held.

In 1985 Greenland received internal self-government and after a referendum withdrew from the EU.

Portugal and Spain applied in 1977 and became members of the EU on January 1, 1986. In February 1986, the Single European Act was signed in Luxembourg.

In 1992, all states of the European Community signed the Treaty establishing the European Union.

1990 - Unification of Germany. 1995 - 15 member states. Austria, Finland and Sweden join.

In 1994, referendums on EU membership were held in Austria, Finland, Norway and Sweden. The majority of Norwegians again vote against.

Only Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein remain members of the European Free Trade Association.

2004 - 25 member states (EU-25). In 2004, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta become EU members.

On October 9, 2002, the European Commission recommended 10 candidate states for accession to the EU in 2004: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta. The population of these 10 countries was about 75 million; their combined PPP GDP is approximately US $ 840 billion, roughly equal to that of Spain.

This EU enlargement can be called one of the most ambitious EU projects to date. The need for such a step was dictated by the desire to draw a line under the division of Europe, which had lasted since the end of World War II, and to firmly tie the countries of Eastern Europe to the West in order to prevent them from falling back to communist methods of government. Cyprus was included in this list because Greece insisted on it, which otherwise threatened to veto the entire plan.

Upon completion of negotiations between the “old” and future “new” EU members, the final positive decision was announced on December 13, 2002. The European Parliament approved the decision on April 9, 2003.

On April 16, 2003 in Athens, 15 "old" and 10 "new" EU members signed the Treaty of Accession (). In 2003, referendums were held in nine states (excluding Cyprus), and then the signed Treaty was ratified by parliaments.

On May 1, 2004 Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Slovenia, Cyprus, Malta became members of the European Union.

After the accession to the EU of ten new countries, the level of economic development of which is significantly lower than the average European one, the leaders of the European Union found themselves in a situation where the main burden of budgetary spending on the social sphere, subsidies for agriculture, etc., falls on them. At the same time, these countries do not want to increase the share of contributions to the all-union budget in excess of the level of 1% of GDP determined by the EU documents.

The second problem is that after the enlargement of the European Union, the principle of making major decisions by consensus, which had been in effect until now, turned out to be virtually inoperative. In the current situation, if in any of the 25 countries a referendum or parliamentary vote on the draft EU Constitution fails, then the entire European Union may be left without a basic law.

On January 1, 2007, the next expansion of the European Union took place - the entry of Bulgaria and Romania into it. The EU has previously warned these countries that Romania and Bulgaria still have a lot to do in the area of ​​fighting corruption and reforming legislation. In these issues, Romania, according to European officials, lagged behind, retaining vestiges of socialism in the structure of the economy and not meeting EU standards.

On December 17, 2005, the official status of a candidate for EU membership was granted to Macedonia.

On February 21, 2005, the European Union signed an action plan with Ukraine. This was probably the result of the fact that powers came to power in Ukraine, whose foreign policy strategy is aimed at joining the European Union. At the same time, according to the EU leadership, it is not worth talking about Ukraine's full membership in the European Union, since the new government needs to do a lot to prove that there is a full-fledged democracy in Ukraine that meets European standards, and to conduct political, economic and social reforms.

Notes:

Not all European countries intend to participate in the European integration process. Twice in national referendums (1972 and 1994) the Norwegian population rejected the proposal to join the EU. The next referendum on accession to the EU will take place in this country no earlier than 2007.

Iceland is not part of the EU.

In accordance with its Constitution, Switzerland is neutral and does not belong to any blocs, which, however, joined the Schengen Agreement on January 1, 2007.

Small states of Europe - Andorra, Vatican, Liechtenstein, Monaco, San Marino are not EU members.

They were expressed at the Paris Conference of 1867. However, these integration ideas did not receive practical implementation: the contradictions between the countries were so deep that before they realized the need for cooperation, European countries went through two world wars and several local wars.

Integration tendencies in Europe re-emerged immediately after the end of World War II, when the leading European countries realized that the restoration and development of national economies is possible only by pooling efforts and resources. The chronology of events gives the best idea of ​​the half-century path of European countries towards integration.

Chronology of the development of the European Union

May 9, 1950 - French Foreign Minister R. Schumann made a proposal to create a single European organization for the production and consumption of coal and steel, uniting the strategic potentials of France and Germany;

April 18, 1951 - an agreement on the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was signed in Paris. The treaty was signed by France, Germany. Italy, Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg;

March 25, 1957 - in Rome, the ECSC member states signed agreements on the establishment of the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (EurAtom);

January 4, 1960 - the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) was formed, which included Austria, Denmark. Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland and Great Britain;

July 9, 1961 - the agreement on the associated membership of Greece in the EEC was signed - the first such document in the history of the Community;

July 20, 1963 - The Yaoundé Convention is signed - an agreement that laid the foundations for associated relations between the EEC and Africa. Thanks to this convention, 18 African countries were able to enjoy the benefits of trade, technical and financial cooperation with the Community for five years;

July 1, 1964 - the EEC creates a common agricultural market for the EEC, the beginning of the European Fund for the Support of Agriculture (FEOGA);

July 1, 1968 - the creation of the Customs Union was completed ahead of schedule. All customs tariffs previously levied between the member states have been canceled, and the formation of common system customs fees at the external borders of the EEC;

October 1970 - A commission of experts on financial and monetary issues headed by the Prime Minister of Luxembourg P. Werner presented a plan for further unification of economic policy and the creation of a monetary union - the so-called Werner plan. According to the plan, by 1980 it was planned to create a complete economic and monetary union with a single currency;

April 24, 1972 - the introduction of the "currency snake" as a reaction to the instability of the world currency market. It was envisaged to change the exchange rates of the countries participating in the "collective swimming" within the established limits of deviations from the average central exchange rate;

January 21, 1974 - The PS Council of Ministers launches a social action program aimed at achieving full and optimal employment in the Community and improving working conditions;

December 9-10, 1974 - at a meeting of heads of state and / or government in Paris, the procedure for electing members of the European Parliament was determined (by universal, direct and secret ballot);

February 28, 1975 - The European Community and 46 African, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) countries sign the Lomé Convention (Lome, Togo) to replace the Yaundeka Convention and provide for trade cooperation;

March 9-10, 1979 - at the session of the European Council in Paris, a decision was made to introduce the European Monetary System (EMU). EMU includes:

• (ECU),
• currency exchange and information mechanism,
• credit conditions,
• transfer mechanism;

December 8, 1984 - 10 Community countries and 65 ACP partners sign the third Lomsi Convention. For the first time, the idea of ​​respect for human rights was directly expressed;

September 9, 1985 - an intergovernmental conference in Luxembourg, the purpose of which was to revise the Rome Treaties and formalize the political cooperation of the member states;

December 2-4, 1985 - session of the European Council in Luxembourg. A single European act has been adopted to improve

January 1, 1986 - Spain and Portugal become members of the European Community. The number of member countries increases to twelve;

1-13 February 1988 - Extraordinary Session of the European Council in Brussels. The member states agree on financial reform issues, adopting the so-called Delopa-I Package, as well as caps on spending on common agrarian policy;

December 8-12, 1989 - session of the European Council in Strasbourg. A decision was made to convene at the end of 1990 an intergovernmental conference on the formation of an economic and monetary union;

December 15, 1989 - 12 Member States of the Community and 69 ACP countries sign the Fourth Lomé Convention;

December 18, 1989 - Trade Agreement signed and economic cooperation between the European Community and the USSR;

May 29, 1990 - Agreement on the establishment of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) was signed in Paris to support reforms in the countries of Central and Eastern Europe;

June 19, 1990 - France, Germany. Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg signed the Schengen Agreement to eliminate border controls at the internal borders of the Community;

December 14, 1990 - an intergovernmental conference opens in Rome on the creation of a political union, as well as an economic and monetary union;

December 16, 1991 - Association agreements signed between the Community and Hungary, Poland and Czechoslovakia;

February 7, 1992 - in Maastricht (Netherlands), the Treaty on the European Union (Maastricht Treaty) was signed, providing for the creation of an economic, monetary and political union of the member states of the European Community;

May 2, 1992 - The Community and EFTA signed the Agreement establishing the European Economic Area. EFTA, the European Free Trade Association, brings together non-EU Western European countries: Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein. In essence, this is the inclusion of the EFTA countries in internal European integration;

January 1, 1993 - the program for the construction of a single internal EU market was completed. On the internal borders of the Community, all restrictions on the movement of goods, services, people and capital have been removed;

November 1, 1993 - The Maastricht agreements entered into force. The community is officially renamed the European Union;

June 24, 1994 - on the island. Corfu (Greece), a Partnership and Cooperation Agreement (PCA) was signed between PS and Russia. The objectives of the Agreement include the creation of conditions for the formation in the future of a free trade zone, covering basically all trade between them, conditions for the freedom of the establishment of companies and the movement of capital;

July 1, 1995 - The Schengen Agreement on the elimination of border controls at the internal borders of the EU comes into force. Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Germany, France, Spain and Portugal became its participants. Later they were joined by Italy, Austria, Greece and Finland;

March 26, 1996 - The Intergovernmental Conference (IGC) of the EU member states was opened in Turin (Italy). The aim of the conference is to make decisions regarding the revision of the fundamental EU treaties and develop a new strategy in connection with the creation of the Economic and Monetary Union and the forthcoming enlargement of the EU;

December 13-14, 1996 - session of the European Council in Dublin (Ireland). Discussion of the text of a new treaty on the European Union, culminating in the signing of the Stability Pact, which marked a new important step towards the transition to a single currency from January 1, 1999;

June 1997 - meeting of members of the European Council in Amsterdam (Netherlands). The emergence of a new draft EU treaty designed to reform EU institutions in the light of upcoming enlargement;

December 1, 1997 - the Agreement on Partnership and Cooperation between the Russian Federation and the EU entered into force;

December 12-13, 1997 - at a meeting in Luxembourg, the final decision was made to admit 12 new members to the EU (Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovenia, Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Bulgaria, Malta and Cyprus). Turkey is recognized as the 13th official candidate for EU membership. Accession negotiations with the "first wave" countries (Estonia, Poland, Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovenia and Cyprus) began in April 1998;

May 2, 1998 - the session of the European Council approved the list of countries that, from January 1, 1999, will enter the economic and monetary union and introduce a single currency - the euro;

January 1, 1999 - EU countries (Austria, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Ireland, Sweden, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Finland and France) introduce a single currency - the euro. The euro begins to be used in non-cash circulation for the implementation of a single EU monetary policy, the placement of new issues of government securities, servicing banking operations and settlements;

January 1, 2002 - The introduction of the cash euro. Replacing national cash with euro cash. The process of creating the European Economic Union has been completed.

The first steps of monetary integration in Europe were made back in the 1950s. The creation of the European Common Market has accelerated this process.

In 1958-1968. the Customs Union was formed:

• customs duties and restrictions in mutual trade have been abolished;
• introduced unified customs tariffs for the import of goods from third countries.

By 1967, a common agricultural market was formed. A special regime for regulating agricultural prices has been introduced. The Agrarian Fund of the European Union was created. The customs union was supplemented with elements of interstate coordination of economic and monetary policy. Many restrictions on the movement of capital and labor have been lifted.

However, trade integration required convergence in trade. state regulation economy. There is a need to create supranational coordinating mechanisms. At the end of 1970, the countries of the European Union adopted a program for the stage-by-stage creation by 1980 of an economic and monetary union.

Werner's plan(Prime Minister of Luxembourg) envisaged three stages.

Stage 1: 1971-1973 - coordination and subsequent unification of budgetary, credit and exchange rate policies, liberalization of capital flows and the creation of the European Monetary Cooperation Fund. It was envisaged to narrow the limits of fluctuations (± 1.2% and then to zero) of exchange rates, the introduction of full mutual convertibility of currencies;

Stage 2: 1974-1979 - creation of supranational bodies with rights in the field of financial, monetary and foreign exchange policy;

Stage 3: the introduction in 1980 of a single currency and the creation of a European federal monetary system. It was planned to harmonize the activities of banks and banking legislation. The tasks were set to establish a common center for solving monetary and financial problems and to unite the central banks of the EEC like the US Federal Reserve System to harmonize monetary and foreign exchange policies.

In April 1973, the EU countries managed to create the European Monetary Cooperation Fund and the European Unit of Account (EPE). The process of currency integration developed in the following areas:

• intergovernmental consultations to coordinate monetary and economic policy;
• joint swimming of the exchange rates of the EEC (European "currency snake");
• conducting foreign exchange interventions not only in dollars, but also in European currencies (since 1972) to reduce dependence on the dollar;
• formation of a system of interstate mutual loans to cover temporary deficits in the balance of payments and settlements between banks;
• creation of the EEC budget, which is largely used for monetary and financial regulation of the agrarian Common Market;
• introduction of a system of compensatory foreign exchange payments and fees - taxes and subsidies in the form of a surcharge or discount to a single price for agricultural goods, which, prior to the introduction of the ECU, were set in agricultural units of account equal to the dollar and converted into national currencies at a special rate;
• establishment of interstate monetary institutions: the European Investment Bank, the European Development Fund, the European Fund for Monetary Cooperation, etc.

However, significant structural differences in the economies of the participating countries, psychological and economic unwillingness to transfer sovereign rights to supranational bodies for regulating monetary and financial relations, economic (primarily energy) and currency crises of the 70s and 80s of the XX century. did not allow Werner's plan to be fully implemented. His ideas were largely realized later.

The long stagnation of EU integration lasted from the mid-70s to the mid-80s. The regime of the “European currency snake” turned out to be insufficiently effective, since it was not fully supported by the coordination of monetary and economic policies of the EU countries. In order not to spend foreign exchange reserves, some countries periodically emerged from the "currency snake". Since the mid-1970s, only the FRG, Denmark, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and periodically France have participated in the joint float of exchange rates; the rest preferred the individual floating of their currencies (Great Britain, Ireland, Italy and periodically France).

By the end of the 70s, the search for ways to create an economic and monetary union was intensified. The European Union Commission in October 1977 proposed the creation of a European body for the emission of a collective currency and partial control over the economies of the EEC member states. These principles of monetary integration formed the basis of the Franco-German project in 1978. In Paris on March 9-10, 1979, a session of the European Council took place, at which a decision was made to create the European Monetary System (EMU), the main tasks of which:

• establishment of relative currency stability within the EU;
• the need to become the main element of the strategy of growth in the conditions of stability;
• strengthening the interconnection of economic development processes and giving a new impetus to the European integration process;
• providing a stabilizing effect on international economic and monetary relations.

(from January 1) Chairperson
Council of the European Union Jan Fischer
(from May 8) Square
- General 7th in the world *
4 892 685 km² Population
- Total ()
- Density 3rd in the world *
499.673.325
116.4 people / km² GDP (PPP based)
- Total ()
- GDP / person 1st in the world *
$ 17.08 · 10¹²
$ 39,900 Formed
Signed by
It entered into force Maastricht Treaty
7 february
Nov. 1 Community currencies Timezone UTC from 0 to +2
(from +1 to +3 during Summer Time)
(with overseas departments of France,
UTC from −4 to +4) Top level domain Dialing codes Each member of the European Union has its own dialing code in zones 3 and 4 Official site http://europa.eu/ * Considered as a whole.

European Union (European Union, The EU) - the union of 27 European states that have signed European Union Treaty(Maastricht Treaty). The EU is a unique international entity: it combines the features of an international organization and a state, but formally it is neither one nor the other. The Union is not a subject of public international law, but it has the authority to participate in international relations and plays an important role in them.

Special and dependent territories of the EU member states

EU territory on the world map European Union Outer regions Non-European states and territories

Special territories outside Europe that are part of the European Union:

Also, according to Article 182 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union ( Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union), the member states of the European Union associate with the European Union lands and territories outside Europe, which maintain a special relationship with:

France -

The Netherlands -

United Kingdom -

EU Candidate Requirements

To join the European Union, the candidate country must meet the Copenhagen criteria. Copenhagen criteria- the criteria for countries' accession to the European Union, which were adopted in June 1993 at a meeting of the European Council in Copenhagen and confirmed in December 1995 at a meeting of the European Council in Madrid. The criteria require that the state observes democratic principles, the principles of freedom and respect for human rights, as well as the principle of the rule of law (Art. 6, Art. 49 of the Treaty on the European Union). Also, the country must have a competitive market economy, and the common rules and standards of the EU must be recognized, including a commitment to the goals of a political, economic and monetary union.

History

Czech presidency logo in the first half of 2009

The ideas of pan-Europeanism, long put forward by thinkers throughout the history of Europe, sounded with particular force after the Second World War. In the post-war period, a number of organizations appeared on the continent: the Council of Europe, NATO, the Western European Union.

The first step towards the creation of a modern European Union was made in: Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Italy signed an agreement on the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC, ECSC - European Coal and Steel Community), the purpose of which was to unite European resources for the production of steel and coal, this agreement entered into force in July 1952.

In order to deepen economic integration, the same six states established (EEC, Common Market) ( EEC - European Economic Community) and (Euratom, Euratom - European Atomic Energy Community). The most important and broadest in terms of competence of these three European communities was the EEC, so in 1993 it was officially renamed the European Community ( EC - European Community).

The process of development and transformation of these European communities into the modern European Union took place through, firstly, the transfer of an increasing number of management functions to the supranational level and, secondly, an increase in the number of integration participants.

History of EU enlargement

Year	Country	General number members of
March 25, 1957	Belgium, Germany 1, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, France ²	6
January 1, 1973	Great Britain *, Denmark ³, Ireland	9
January 1, 1981	Greece	10
January 1, 1986	,	12
January 1, 1995	, Finland, Sweden	15
May 1, 2004	Hungary, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Estonia	25
January 1, 2007	Bulgaria, Romania	27

Notes (edit)

² Includes overseas departments Guadeloupe, Martinique, Reunion and French Guiana. Algeria seceded from France (and the EU) on July 5, 1962. Saint Pierre and Miquelon was an overseas department (and part of the EU) from 1983 to 1983. Saint Barthelemy and Saint Martin, which seceded from Guadeloupe on February 22, 2007, will return to the EU following the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty.

° In 1973 the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK) joined the EU along with the Channel Islands, Isle of Man and Gibraltar

Norway

• The first pillar, the European Communities, brings together the predecessors of the EU: the European Community (formerly the European Economic Community) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom). The third organization, the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), ceased to exist in 2002 in accordance with the Paris Treaty that established it.
• The second pillar is called the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP).
• The third pillar is “police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters”.

With the help of “pillars”, the treaties delimit policy areas that fall within the purview of the EU. In addition, the pillars provide a visual representation of the role of EU Member State governments and EU institutions in the decision-making process. Within the framework of the first pillar, the role of EU institutions is decisive. Decisions here are made by the "community method". The Community is responsible for issues related to, inter alia, the common market, the customs union, the common currency (while maintaining their own currency by some of the members), the common agricultural policy and the common fisheries policy, certain issues of migration and refugees, as well as the cohesion policy ). In the second and third pillars, the role of EU institutions is minimal and decisions are made by the EU member states. This decision-making method is called intergovernmental. As a result of the Nice Treaty (2001), some issues of migration and refugees, as well as issues of gender equality in the workplace, were moved from the second to the first pillar. Consequently, on these issues, the role of EU institutions in relation to EU member states has increased.

Today, membership in the European Union, the European Community and Euratom is one, all states joining the Union become members of the Communities.

Chamber of Auditors

The Court of Auditors was established in 1975 to audit the budget of the EU and its institutions. Composition. The House is composed of representatives of the member states (one from each member state). They are appointed by the Council by unanimous decision for a six-year term and are completely independent in the performance of their duties.

1. checks the income and expenditure reports of the EU and all its institutions and bodies with access to EU funds;
2. monitors the quality of financial management;
3. after the end of each financial year, draw up a report on its work, as well as submit to the European Parliament and the Council conclusions or comments on specific issues;
4. helps the European Parliament to monitor the execution of the EU budget.

Headquarters - Luxembourg.

European Central Bank

The European Central Bank was formed in 1998 from banks of 11 EU countries that make up the Eurozone (Germany, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, Austria, Portugal, Finland, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg). Greece, which introduced the euro on January 1, 2001, became the twelfth country in the euro area.

In accordance with Art. 8 of the Treaty establishing the European Community was founded European System of Central Banks is a supranational financial regulatory body that unites the European Central Bank (ECB) and the national central banks of all 27 member states of the European Union. The ESCB is governed by the governing bodies of the ECB.

European investment bank

Created in accordance with the Treaty, on the basis of capital provided by the member countries. The EIB is endowed with the functions of a commercial bank, operates in the international financial markets, and provides loans to government agencies of member countries.

Economic and Social Committee

(Economic and Social Committee) is an advisory body to the EU. Formed in accordance with the Treaty of Rome.

Composition. Consists of 344 members called advisers.

Functions. Consults the Council and the Commission on the issues of social and economic policy of the EU. Represents various spheres of the economy and social groups (employers, people of hired labor and liberal professions employed in industry, agriculture, the service sector, as well as representatives of public organizations).

The members of the Committee are appointed by the Council by unanimous decision for a period of 4 years. The Committee elects a Chairperson from among its members for a term of 2 years. After the admission of new states to the EU, the number of the Committee will not exceed 350 people (see Table 2).

Place of meetings. The committee meets once a month in Brussels.

Committee of the Regions

(Committee of the Regions).

The Committee of the Regions is an advisory body providing representation of regional and local administrations in the work of the EU. The committee was established in accordance with the Maastricht Treaty and has been operating since March 1994.

Consists of 344 members representing regional and local bodies, but completely independent in the performance of their duties. The number of members from each country is the same as in the Economic and Social Committee. Nominations are approved by the Council by unanimous decision on the proposals of the Member States for a period of 4 years. The Committee elects a Chairperson and other officers from among its members for a period of 2 years.

Functions. Consults the Council and the Commission and gives opinions on all issues affecting the interests of the regions.

Location of the sessions. Plenary sessions are held in Brussels 5 times a year.

European Ombudsman Institute

The European Ombudsman Institution deals with citizens' complaints about the mismanagement of an EU institution or body. The decisions of this body are not binding, but they have significant social and political influence.

15 specialized agencies and bodies

European Monitoring Center for Combating Racism and Xenophobia, Europol, Eurojust.

EU law

A feature of the European Union that distinguishes it from other international organizations is the existence of its own law, which directly regulates the relations not only of the member states, but also of their citizens and legal entities.

EU law consists of the so-called primary, secondary and tertiary (decisions of the Court of Justice of the European Communities). Primary law - EU constituent treaties; agreements making changes to them (revision agreements); accession treaties for new member states. Secondary law - acts issued by EU bodies. The decisions of the Court of Justice of the EU and other judicial bodies of the Union are widely used as case law.

EU law has a direct effect on the territory of the EU countries and has priority in relation to the national legislation of the states.

EU law is subdivided into institutional law (rules governing the creation and functioning of EU institutions and bodies) and substantive law (rules governing the process of realizing the goals of the EU and the EU communities). The substantive law of the EU, like the law of individual countries, can be subdivided into sectors: EU customs law, EU environmental law, EU transport law, EU tax law, etc. Taking into account the structure of the EU (“three pillars”), EU law is also subdivided into European law. communities, Schengen law, etc.

Languages ​​of the European Union

23 languages ​​are officially used equally in European institutions.

European Union, EU (European Union, EU) - an association of European states participating in the process of European integration.

The predecessors of the EU were:

1951-1957 - European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC);
- 1957-1967 - European Economic Community (EEC);
- 1967–1992 - European Communities (EEC, Euratom, ECSC);
- from November 1993 - European Union. The name "European Communities" is often used to refer to all stages of the EU's development.

The main proclaimed goals of the Union are:

- the introduction of European citizenship;
- ensuring freedom, security and legality;
- promoting economic and social progress;
- strengthening the role of Europe in the world.

The population of the EU countries is more than 500 million people.

The official languages ​​of the EU are the state languages ​​of the member states: English, Greek, Spanish (Catalan), Italian, German, Dutch, Portuguese, Finnish, Flemish, French, Swedish.

The EU has its own official symbols - the flag and anthem. The flag was approved in 1986 and is a blue rectangular cloth with a length to height ratio of 1.5: 1, in the center of which there are 12 golden stars in a circle. This flag was first raised in front of the European Commission in Brussels on May 29, 1986. The EU Anthem is Ludwig van Beethoven's Ode to Joy, a fragment of his Ninth Symphony (which is also the anthem of another pan-European organization - the Council of Europe).

Although the EU does not have an official capital (the member states alternately chair the Community for six months according to the Latin alphabet), most of the main EU institutions are located in Brussels (Belgium). In addition, some EU bodies are located in Luxembourg, Strasbourg, Frankfurt am Main and others large cities.

The 12 EU member states (except Great Britain, Denmark and Sweden) that are members of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), in addition to common bodies and Community legislation, have a single currency - the euro.

European Union countries

1. Austria
2. Italy
3. Slovakia
4. Belgium
5. Cyprus
6. Slovenia
7. Bulgaria
8. Latvia
9. Finland
10. United Kingdom
11. Lithuania
12. France
13. Hungary
14. Luxembourg
15. Croatia
16. Germany
17. Malta
18. Czech Republic
19.Greece
20. Netherlands
21.Sweden
22. Denmark
23. Poland
24. Estonia
25. Ireland
26. Portugal
27. Spain
28. Romania

The essence of the European Union

European Union (European Union, EU) - economic and political union of 27 European states (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg , Malta, Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, UK).

Aimed at regional integration, the Union was legally enshrined in the Maastricht Treaty in 1993. With five hundred million inhabitants, the share of the EU as a whole in the world gross domestic product in 2009 was about 28% at nominal value and about 21% of GDP, calculated at purchasing power parity.

The creation of regional economic blocs is often attributed to the benefits of free trade in large markets, resulting in greater cost savings in a competitive environment and production optimization. However, the same is achieved through the internationalization of the economy, the liberalization of markets, and the reduction of government intervention. The process of European integration began on a global scale when the economies of European countries became open. The creation of the OSCE, participation in the GATT and other negotiations, in which trade issues were frequently discussed, led to the liberalization of international markets.

As a result, with the help of a standardized system of laws in force in all countries of the Union, a currency union was created, guaranteeing the free movement of people, goods, capital and services, including the abolition of passport controls between the 22 member countries of the Schengen Agreement. The Union adopts laws (directives, statutes and regulations) in the field of justice and home affairs, as well as develops general policies in the field of trade, agriculture, fisheries and regional development. Sixteen countries of the union have introduced a single currency, the euro, to form the eurozone.

So, the EU is an international entity that combines the features of an international organization and a state; however, formally it is neither the one nor the other. The main innovation associated with the creation of the European Union, in comparison with other international entities, is that the members of the Union renounced a certain part of national sovereignty in order to create a political association with a single structure. It is also important to note that the countries that make up the union are heterogeneous and have varying degrees of integration into the world economy.

European Union law

European Union law (EU law; European Union law) is a unique legal phenomenon that has developed during the development of European integration within the European Communities and the European Union, the result of the implementation of the supranational competence of the institutions of the European Union. The law of the European Union is a specific legal order, a legal system formed at the junction of international law and the domestic law of the member states of the European Union, which has independent sources and principles. The autonomy of the European Union Law has been confirmed by a number of decisions of the Court of Justice of the European Communities.

The term “law of the European Union” has been used since the emergence of the European Union, before that the existing legal array was designated as “law of the European Communities”, “law of the European Community”, although the latter concepts are not equivalent to the concept of “law of the European Union”. Some scholars regard the concept of "European Union law" as synonymous with the broader concept of "European law" used in a narrow sense.

The central link, the core of the law of the European Union and the law of the European Communities is the law of the European Community (EU law). The core, the supporting structure of EU law are the principles of EU law - the initial provisions of the most general nature, determining the meaning, content, implementation and development of all other EU law.

The principles of EU law are divided into functional and general principles of EU law. The functional principles include the principle of the rule of law of the EU and the principle of direct action of the law of the EU. The principle of the rule of law of the EU means the priority of the norms of EU law over the norms of the national legislation of the member states, the norms of the national law of the member states should not contradict the norms of the EU law. The principle of direct action of EU law means the direct application of EU law on the territory of the member states, the action of the norms of Community law without any transformation into the legal order of the member state. These principles were developed by the practice of the Court through the interpretation of the constituent documents of the organization. The general principles of EU law include the principle of protection of individual rights and freedoms, the principle of legal certainty, the principle of proportionality, the principle of non-discrimination, the principle of subsidiarity, as well as a number of procedural principles.

European Union law has an original source system. Forms (sources) of European Union law form an integral system of sources with a hierarchy of acts inherent in such a system. The system of sources of law of the European Union includes two groups of acts - acts of primary law and acts of secondary law.

All statutory treaties of the European Union belong to acts of primary law. By their legal nature, acts of primary law are international treaties. The norms of acts of primary law have superior legal force in relation to all other norms of the European Union contained in acts of secondary law.

The peculiarity of the European Union is that it is based on several international treaties of a constituent nature. First of all, these are the Paris Treaty establishing the ECSC, the Rome Treaty establishing the EU in 1957, the Rome Treaty establishing Euratom, the Maastricht Treaty on the European Union, the so-called “founding treaties in the narrow sense”. These treaties are “constitutive” in nature for the European Union. The "founding treaties in a broad sense" usually include all of the above acts, as well as international treaties that amend and supplement them: the Brussels Treaty establishing a single Council and a single Commission of the European Communities (Merger Agreement), Budget Treaty, Budget Treaty, Single European Act , Amsterdam Treaty amending the Treaty on the European Union, the treaties establishing the European communities and a number of related acts. At the Conference of the Member States, which ended in Nice, the next amendments to the founding agreements of the Union (Nice Treaty) were approved.

Acts of secondary law include acts issued by the institutions of the Union, as well as all other acts adopted on the basis of constituent agreements. In determining the sources of secondary law, we observe a clash of approaches to understanding sources in the continental and Anglo-Saxon legal families (recognition as sources of jurisdictional acts), as well as the influence of the concept of sources in international law.

Secondary law of the European Union has its sources in various categories of law-making forms. The first category of secondary law acts is normative acts, which include regulations, directives, framework decisions, general decisions of the ECSC, recommendations of the ECSC. The second category is individual acts, which include decisions (except for general decisions of the ECSC). The third category is the recommendatory acts, which include recommendations (except for the ECSC recommendations) and conclusions. The next category of acts of secondary law are acts on the coordination of the General Foreign and Security Policy, as well as the Cooperation of the Police and the Judiciary in the criminal law sphere. This category of acts includes principles and general guidelines, a common position, a joint action, a common strategy. A separate category of acts is constituted by jurisdictional acts - decisions of the Court. Sources of secondary law include sui generis acts - “unofficial” forms of law, acts not provided for by the constituent treaties, issued by the Union's bodies (usually expressed as a decision of a specific body or a resolution). The last category of sources of secondary law can be designated as international acts, it includes decisions and acts of representatives of member states, conventions between member states concluded on the basis of constituent treaties, international treaties of the European Union.

The originality of the European Union also predetermines the structural features of the European Union law. The structure of European Union law is made up of several interrelated elements. The elements of this structure are the founding treaties of the European Union, provisions on human rights and fundamental freedoms, norms adopted under the CFSP and ATP, as well as the law of the European Communities.

In the law of the European Union today, there are trends of codification and improvement (Enforcement). The Laaken Declaration adopted at the summit of the heads of state / government of the member states within the framework of the European Council emphasizes the need to reform the sources of primary and secondary law of the European Union, simplify legal forms and create a full-fledged Constitution of the European Union on the basis of the founding treaties of the European Union and the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union ...

European Union policy

The first foreign policy goals of the Community were enshrined in the Treaty of Rome. They were declarative in nature and boiled down to two provisions: a statement of solidarity with the former colonial countries and the desire to ensure their prosperity in accordance with the principles of the UN Charter; calling on other European peoples to participate in European integration.

The topic of developing cooperation in the military-political field has again acquired relevance. The Luxembourg Session of the Foreign Ministers of the Member States established the European Political Cooperation (ENP) system. It was an interstate mechanism for mutual exchange of information and political consultations at the level of foreign ministers.

The topic of military-political cooperation was continued in the form of the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) of the EU, enshrined in the Maastricht Treaty. It included "the possible further formalization of a common defensive policy, which could eventually lead to the creation of a common defense force." The common foreign and security policy of the European Union was formulated on the basis of the Maastricht Treaty and was further developed in further treaties such as the Amsterdam Treaty, the Nice Treaty or the Lisbon Treaty.

Among the main goals of the CFSP were named:

Protecting common values, fundamental interests, independence and integrity of the Union in accordance with the principles of the UN Charter;
development of international cooperation;
development of democracy and the rule of law, respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.

In contrast to the ENP, the CFSP proposed not only the exchange of information and mutual consultations, but also the development on an intergovernmental basis of a common EU position on the most important issues and the implementation of joint actions that are binding on the member states.

The Treaty of Amsterdam expanded and concretized the mechanisms for the implementation of the CFSP, according to which it covers all areas of foreign and security policy by:

Definition of principles and guidelines for CFSP;
making decisions on a common strategy;
strengthening systematic cooperation between Member States in the implementation of their policies.

The common defense policy provided for the gradual incorporation of the operational structures of the Western European Union (WEU) into the framework of the European Union.

The mechanism of the AFSP system has been significantly strengthened. The EU has begun to develop "common strategies" adopted by the European Council, including the adopted common EU strategies in relation to Russia, Ukraine and the Mediterranean countries.

To make decisions on joint action and common positions of the EU, as well as other decisions based on a common strategy, the principle of a qualified majority, rather than unanimity, was introduced.

This increased the effectiveness of this body, primarily by giving it the ability to overcome the veto of individual disgruntled participants who impeded decision-making.

European Broadcasting Union

The European Broadcasting Union, EBU (English European Broadcasting Union, EBU; French Union Europeenne de Radio-Television, UER) is a European organization, the largest association of national broadcasting organizations in the world.

The European Broadcasting Union organizes such annual competitions as Eurovision, Junior Eurovision and Dance Eurovision. The union is also the owner of all intellectual property produced by the Eurovision Song Contest.

The European Broadcasting Union was created on February 12, 1950 by 23 European television and radio companies in the Mediterranean region at a conference in the resort town of Torquay, Devon, UK. In 1993, after the self-dissolution of OIRT, the EBU adopted RGTRK Ostankino, VGTRK, State Television and Radio Broadcasting Company of Ukraine, RTN, State Television and Radio of the Republic of Belarus, Polish, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Romanian, Latvian, Estonian, Bulgarian national television; Polish, Czech, Slovak, Hungarian, Romanian, Latvian, Estonian, Bulgarian national radio, Lithuanian radio and television.

The supreme body is the general meeting (L'Assemblee generale), consisting of representatives of the member broadcasting companies; between general meetings - the executive committee (Le Conseil executif), elected by the general meeting. The highest officials are the President and the Directeur general. The main office is located in Geneva.

Creation of the European Union

The history of the formation of the European Union began in 1951 with the formation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), which included six countries.

The history of the formation of the European Union began in 1951 with the formation of the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), which included six countries (Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, France and the Federal Republic of Germany). Within the countries, all tariff and quantitative restrictions on trade in these goods were removed.

On March 25, 1957, the Rome Treaty was signed establishing the European Economic Community (EEC) on the basis of the ECSC and the European Atomic Energy Community. In 1967, three European communities (the European Coal and Steel Community, the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Community) merged into the European Community.

On June 14, 1985, the Schengen Agreement on the free movement of goods, capital and citizens was signed - an agreement providing for the abolition of customs barriers within the European Union, while simultaneously tightening controls at the external borders of the EU (entered into force on March 26, 1995).

On February 7, 1992, in Maastricht (Netherlands), an agreement on the creation of the European Union was signed (entered into force on November 1, 1993). The agreement completed the case of previous years on the settlement of monetary and political systems European countries.

In order to achieve higher form economic integration between the EU states, the euro was created - the single monetary unit of the EU. The euro was introduced in non-cash form on the territory of the EU member states on January 1, 1999, and cash banknotes - on January 1, 2002. The euro replaced the ECU, the notional unit of account of the European Community, which was a basket of currencies of all EU member states.

The jurisdiction of the European Union includes issues related to, inter alia, the common market, the customs union, the single currency (while maintaining their own currency by some of the members), the common agricultural policy and the common fisheries policy.

The organization includes 27 European states: Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Great Britain, Denmark, Ireland, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Austria, Finland, Sweden, Hungary, Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia, Czech Republic, Estonia. Since January 1, 2007, Bulgaria and Romania have officially joined the European Union.

Institutions of the European Union:

The highest political body of the European Union is the European Council. As a summit meeting of heads of state, the Council actually defines the tasks of the Union and its relations with the member states. The sessions are chaired by the president or prime minister of a country that has been holding the presidency of the EU's governing bodies alternately for six months.

The highest executive body of the European Union is the European Commission (CES, Commission of the European Communities). The European Commission has 27 members, one from each member state. The Commission plays a major role in ensuring the day-to-day activities of the EU. Each commissioner, like the minister of the national government, is responsible for a specific area of ​​work.

The European Parliament is an assembly of 786 members directly elected by the citizens of the EU member states for a term of five years. The deputies unite according to their political orientation.

The highest judicial body of the EU is the European Court of Justice (officially the Court of Justice of the European Communities). The Court is composed of 27 judges (one from each of the Member States) and nine Advocates General. The Court regulates disagreements between member states, between member states and the European Union itself, between EU institutions, and gives opinions on international agreements.

To pursue a single monetary and financial policy and equalize the level of economic development of various regions within the EU, the following were established: the Single Central Bank, the European Investment Bank, the European Court of Accounts, the European Development Fund, the Economic and Social Committee, and the Committee of the Regions.

Russia and the European Union

History of relationship development Of the Russian state and the EU has several stages. The path has passed from the confrontation between the USSR and the Communities to the partnership between Russia and the EU.

In the 1950s. relations between the USSR and the Communities were rather strained; The communities were viewed by the leadership of the USSR as the economic base of NATO. In the 1960s. The communities tried to achieve official recognition from the USSR and to establish relations with the countries of the socialist camp. Contacts of the member states of the Communities were carried out with the USSR and other socialist countries, mainly on a bilateral basis, and their volume was small.

By the mid-1970s. The communities began to pursue a common trade policy in relation to the countries of the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (CMEA). At the same time, the center of gravity in making decisions on foreign economic contacts has gradually shifted from the member states to the bodies of the Community.

In 1988, official relations were established between the USSR and the EEC. The CMEA-EEC Declaration on Cooperation was signed, which was of a framework nature.

On December 18, 1989 in Brussels, an Agreement was signed between the USSR and the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Community on Trade and Commercial and Economic Cooperation. It provided for the gradual removal of quantitative restrictions on Soviet exports to the EU, with the exception of goods of particular interest to the communities. In turn, the USSR provided a favorable regime for the export of European goods. Measures were determined for interaction of the Parties in the field of spiders, transport damage and finance. The agreement ended in 1997.

After the collapse of the USSR in the early 1990s. Russian enterprises began to focus more on cooperation with legal entities from EU countries. However, an insufficient legal framework made interaction difficult. Therefore, the EU member states, the ECSC, Euratom and Russia have entered into a Partnership and Cooperation Agreement establishing a partnership between the Russian Federation, on the one hand, and the European Communities and their member states, on the other. They also signed: Protocol on the establishment of a contact group on coal and steel, Protocol on mutual administrative assistance for the proper application of customs legislation, and a number of other documents.

The goals of the partnership between Russia and the EU were declared: ensuring political dialogue; promoting trade and investment; strengthening of political and economic freedoms, democracy; creation of the necessary conditions for free trade between Russia and the EU, as well as for the establishment of companies, cross-border trade in services and the movement of capital.

A regular political dialogue was established on the basis of the Agreement. Twice a year, the President of the Russian Federation meets with the President of the EU Council and the President of the European Commission. Inter-parliamentary dialogue is carried out at the level of the Parliamentary Cooperation Committee.

The parties have granted each other most-favored-nation treatment. Goods from the territory of the parties to the Agreement, imported into the territory of the other party, were not subject to internal taxes (in addition to those that were applied to similar domestic goods).

Much attention was paid to cooperation in the field of legislation. Russia has undertaken to gradually harmonize its legislation with European law in such areas as: business and banking; accounting and taxation of companies; occupational Safety and Health; Financial services; competition rules; state procurements; protection of health and life of people, animals and plants; environmental Protection; consumer rights Protection; indirect taxation; customs legislation; technical norms and standards; nuclear energy; transport.

Cooperation between Russia and the EU in the field of customs relations includes: exchange of information; improvement of working methods; harmonization and simplification of customs procedures in relation to goods traded in trade between the parties; the relationship between the transit systems of the EU and Russia; introduction modern systems customs information; joint arrangements for "dual-use" goods and goods subject to non-tariff restrictions.

Cooperation in the fight against offenses (including illegal immigration, illegal activities in the economic sphere; corruption; counterfeiting; illegal circulation of narcotic and psychotropic substances) is recognized as an important area of ​​interaction between the EU and Russia.

The functions of control over the application of the Agreement were entrusted to a specially created Cooperation Council. The Council includes members of the Government of the Russian Federation, members of the EU Council and members of the Commission at the ministerial level.

The term of the Agreement on Partnership and Cooperation was determined until 2007. However, the attempt to renegotiate the Agreement on new terms was unsuccessful, first of all, due to opposition from Wormwood and some Baltic states. Therefore, at present, the previous Agreement continues to operate, although it no longer meets modern requirements.

It became clear that the objectives set out in the Agreement were largely achieved. Therefore, it was decided to further improve cooperation between Russia and the EU, which was formalized in the Strategy for the Development of Relations Russian Federation with the European Union in the medium term.

The main objectives of the Strategy are declared: ensuring national interests and enhancing the role and authority of Russia in Europe and the world by creating a case European system collective security, attracting the potential and experience of the EU to promote the development of a socially oriented market economy in Russia and the further construction of a democratic state based on the rule of law.

The Russia-EU partnership is supposed to be built on the basis of contractual relations. Russia retains freedom of domestic and foreign policy, independence in international organizations. In the future, partnership with the EU can be expressed in joint efforts to create effective system collective security in Europe, in progress towards the creation of a free trade zone between Russia and the EU, as well as in a high level of mutual trust and cooperation in politics and economics.

Efforts continue to: further open the European market for Russian exports, eliminate residual discrimination in trade, stimulate the inflow of European investments into the Russian economy, and counter attempts by individual CIS states to use the EU to the detriment of Russian interests.

At regular meetings, the leaders of Russia and the EU are strengthening the strategic partnership. For example, in Moscow, the President of the Russian Federation, the Prime Minister of Luxembourg, the President of the European Commission and the High Representative of the EU for Foreign Policy and Security approved four documents that were named "Road Maps": on the common economic space; on the common space of freedom, security and justice; on the common space of external security; on the common space of science and education, including cultural aspects... The road maps record the results achieved at the talks between the leaders of Russia and the EU.

The Agreement between the Russian Federation and the European Community on readmission and the Agreement between the Russian Federation and the European Community on the facilitation of the issuance of visas to citizens of the Russian Federation and the European Union entered into force. The provisions of these treaties do not apply to Denmark. The first agreement regulates the issues of "readmission" - the transfer by the requesting state and the acceptance by the requested state of persons (citizens of the requested state, citizens of third states or stateless persons), whose entry, stay or residence is recognized as illegal. The second one provides a simplified procedure for issuing visas to certain categories of Russian citizens.

Thus, despite the existing problems in relations with Russia, the EU remains Russia's main economic and political partner on the European continent.

European Union system

In connection with the current trends in the development of the EU, much attention in the works of many scholars of international lawyers is paid to the issues of the organizational and institutional structure of the EU. If we talk about the activities of the EU as a whole, then its main link is, directly, the presence of an internal structure, which is characterized by the formation of certain bodies, before which goals and objectives are set, which have powers and are responsible for the decisions made and for the activities carried out.

One of the important issues in the organizational structure of the EU is the distinction between the concepts of "body" and "institution". Most qualified specialists in European law agree that there are both bodies and institutions within the EU, and what should be attributed to each of these concepts. It should be borne in mind that not all bodies can be institutions, and not all institutions perform the functions of bodies within the EU. A. Ya. Kapustin uses three terms in his works: "institutional system", "institute", "subsidiary bodies". "The principles of the organization and functioning of the EU institutional system are expressed in the activities of the institutions and subsidiary bodies of the communities." N. R. Mukhaev, L. M. Entin, A. O. Chetverikov use the term "institutional system of the EU", "organizational and management structure of the EU", as well as "bodies" and "institutions": "It is noteworthy that with the establishment of the European The Union did not create new institutions and other bodies "," individual changes that have occurred in the organizational and managerial structure of the European Union are reduced to the following ... "; "the institutional system is the most important component of the EU mechanism. According to the founding treaties, the European Union must have the necessary institutions and resources to carry out its mission"; "each institution of the Union has its own rules of procedure (internal regulations)."

With regard to the direct distinction between the concepts of "EU institution" and "EU body", then, in our opinion, it consists in the following: under the institution it is necessary to mean the main EU bodies, endowed with powers, and under the term "body" - those structures that are created by institutions EU as a subsidiary to improve the efficiency of its activities. This kind of distinction can also be found in many works of international lawyers. For example, A. Ya. Kapustin singles out EU institutions, as well as subsidiary bodies: “the EU founding treaties provide for the creation of an Economic and Social Committee to assist the Council and the Commission; the Committee of the Regions was established by the Maastricht Treaty in order to ensure the representation of regional and local authorities of the member states ... ". LM Entin believes that within the framework of the EU the concept of "the institutional system of the EU" should be used. By the institutional system, he means the following: "the totality of the governing bodies of the EU, endowed with a special status and powers. All the main parameters of this system are described and enshrined in the constituent acts. The institutional system in the broad sense of the word also includes other bodies." A.O. Chetverikov believes that the "term" institutions "in the law of the European Union denotes the governing bodies of this organization, which are entrusted with the implementation of its main tasks. The institutions of the European Union simultaneously act as institutions of each of the European Communities: the European Community, the European Coal Association and Steel, European Atomic Energy Community. "

Before characterizing each EU institution and body, in our opinion, it is necessary to briefly analyze the history of the formation of the organizational and institutional structure of the EU throughout the entire period of the EU's existence, from the European Communities to the Lisbon Treaty.

According to the Paris Treaty establishing the ECSC in 1951, the institutions of the Association are: the supreme governing body and the Advisory Committee attached to it; The General Assembly (hereinafter referred to as the "European Parliament"); The Special Council of Ministers (hereinafter referred to as the "Council"); EU Court of Justice (hereinafter referred to as the "Court"). The audit is carried out by the Chamber of Auditors, acting within the powers given to it by this Agreement.

With the adoption of the Maastricht Treaty, the former institutions have been preserved, and their scope of activity, basic functions and competence have not changed either. But it should be borne in mind that the names of some institutions have changed. The Council of the European Communities decided to be called the Council of the European Union, and the following names were also renamed: Commission of the European Communities - into the European Commission; Chamber of Auditors - to the European Chamber of Auditors. The main achievement of the Maastricht Treaty was the consolidation of the European Council as the main, governing body: "The European Council gives the Union the necessary incentive for development and determines general political guidelines."

Significant changes were made to the activities of EU bodies and institutions by the Treaty of Amsterdam. They are as follows: increasing the role of the European Parliament, with which the President of the Council should consult; the member states may refer issues related to the general foreign and security policy to the Council for consideration; the chairman of the Council has the right to convene an emergency meeting; a new post of Supreme Chairman for Common Foreign and Security Policy is being introduced (the person occupying this post is at the same time the General Secretary of the Council and has a subordinate apparatus - the Department of Policy Planning and Early Warning). "

The changes introduced by the Nice Treaty did not significantly affect the activities of EU bodies and institutions. Basically, within the framework of this Treaty, "the capabilities of the Union's institutions to monitor the observance of the democratic principles of the social system by the member states were expanded."

Nevertheless, the following amendments have been made to the Treaty establishing the European Community with regard to EU bodies and institutions: "The Council of the EU:

A) in the Council of the EU, the quotas of members, which, however, put the large EU countries in a more advantageous position;
b) The Council is given the right of a judicial chamber.

Commission:

A) a reform of the quantitative composition of the Commission has been undertaken;
b) the power of the Chairman of the Commission has been strengthened;
c) the procedure for appointing the Chairman of the Commission and its other members has been regulated otherwise.

New judicial bodies have been introduced - judicial chambers in order to exercise judicial powers in some special areas: official, intellectual property, etc. "

An attempt was made to adopt a single constitution for Europe, and, as is already known, it was not crowned with success. Nevertheless, this document had a significant impact on the further development of the EU. According to the constitution, if it came into force, the entire existing system of governing and other bodies would remain the same, with the difference that it would have a three-tier character: “the highest level would be occupied by the institutions of the Union - in this capacity the constitution recognized the European Parliament, the European Council, The Council of Ministers (Council), the European Commission and the Court of Justice of the EU Due to their special importance, the status of an institution was also granted to two bodies of special competence - the ECB and the Accounts Chamber; the second level - divisions that did not receive the status of a Union institution, according to the established tradition, would be called bodies; the third level - the constitution for the first time singled out the institutions of the Union in a separate category. The term "institutions" is used to refer to those divisions of the Union that are created to perform special functions and have independent legal personality as a legal entity. "

Finally, the Lisbon Treaty clarified the EU's three-tier system of governance, consisting of institutions vested with power, other bodies (created on the basis of constituent documents and by decision of institutions) and a new category called institutions (which were previously considered a kind of bodies).

In accordance with this Treaty, the institutional structure of the EU includes a total of seven institutions. Two of them - the European Council and the EU Council - are composed of heads of nation states and represent national interests within the EU that are aligned with the interests of the EU as a whole. Five institutions - the European Parliament, the European Commission, the EU Court of Justice (European Judicial System), the ECB and the Court of Accounts - are among the supranational bodies of the EU. Their members are formally independent from the national authorities. They must be guided in their activities by the interests of the EU and the provisions of European law. The European Investment Bank and the European Investment Fund are regarded as the financial bodies of the EU. As for the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions, these entities within the EU are presented as advisory bodies to the EU.

Let's consider the general characteristics of the EU institutions and bodies in accordance with the Lisbon Treaty.

European Council: consists of the Heads of State or Government of the Member States, its President and the President of the Commission. The EU High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy will participate in the work. Whereas previously the chairman was appointed on a rotation basis every six months, now the Council will elect him by a qualified majority for a term of two and a half years. The Chairman of the Council will represent the Union in foreign policy within the framework of his powers and on issues of the Common Foreign and Security Policy. Meetings are held twice a year, if necessary, the President of the European Council has the right to convene an extraordinary meeting of this institution. Decisions are taken either by consensus, or, if it is provided by the treaty, they are taken unanimously or by a qualified majority. The Chairman of the Council is elected by a qualified majority for a term of 2.5 years.

European Parliament: Carries out legislative and budgetary functions in conjunction with the Council. The European Parliament has been entrusted with the election of the President of the European Commission. Since 2009, a new system for the distribution of parliamentary seats has been introduced. The number of members is limited to 750 + 1 (chairman of the parliament); seats are allocated according to the principle of "decreasing proportionality": a minimum of six representatives from the state, a maximum of 96. This system of distribution of seats will come into force in 2014. MEPs are elected every five years through direct elections. The size of the European Parliament is 736 people. The European Parliament takes an active part in the preparation of draft laws that have a significant impact on daily life EU citizens. For example, on the issues of environmental protection, on the protection of consumer rights, on the equal access of citizens to various spheres of activity, on the issues of transport, as well as on the free movement of labor, goods, services, and capital. The European Parliament, together with the EU Council, is considering the adoption of the EU's annual budget. The European Parliament has 20 committees that each specialize in their own area, such as environment, transport, industry or budget.

If necessary, the European Parliament can create an interim committee or a committee on demand. For example, as a result of an oil spill at the Prestige tanker, the European Parliament created a committee to develop ways to improve the safety of the marine environment.

Council of the European Union: Ministerial meetings of member states take place within the framework of the Council of the European Union. Depending on what issues are on the agenda, each country will be represented by a minister responsible for a specific range of issues, such as foreign policy issues, financial issues, social security issues, agriculture, etc. The EU Council is responsible for consistency and decision-making: firstly, it adopts legal acts, usually jointly with the European Parliament; secondly, it controls the economic policies of the member states; thirdly, it implements and defines the common foreign and security policy of the EU, based on the directions that were proposed by the European Council; fourthly, concludes international agreements between the EU and one or more states, as well as international organizations; fifth, coordinates the actions of the Member States and takes concrete measures for cooperation in the legal and police fields on criminal matters; sixth, together with the European Parliament, adopts the EU budget. The Lisbon Treaty changes concern a new super majority voting system. Effective November 1, 2014, a qualified majority is considered to be the votes of at least 55% of the Council members (at least 15 countries), who represent at least 65% of the population of the Union. Four Council member states become the blocking minority. The Council will be chaired by predefined groups of three Member States for 18 months. The members of the Council, in turn, hold the chairmanship every six months.

Pursuant to Decision 2009/881 / EC of the European Council on the Presidency of the Council, the Council adopted a supplementary decision establishing new rules for the rotation of member states during the presidency (Council Decision 2009/908 / EC establishing measures for the application of the European Council Decision on the Presidency of the Council and the chairmanship of the preparatory instances of the Council). In accordance with these acts, the member states, as before, continue to exercise the functions of the President of the Council. However, they are now doing this not individually, but jointly, in the form of predetermined groups of three Member States. According to Art. 1 Decision 2009/881 / EC, the Presidency of the Council “is held by predetermined groups of three Member States over a period of 18 months, i.e. one and a half years. equilibrium within the Union ".

European Commission: defines the general policy of the EU. The chairman of the commission is appointed by the governments of the member states, then his candidacy is approved by the European Parliament. The term of office of the chairman of the commission is five years. The members of the commission are appointed by the chairman of the commission in agreement with the governments of the member states. The number of the commission is 27 members. After the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty. The Commission will consist of one representative from each member state, including the High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy. Since November 2014, the Commission has been composed of representatives corresponding to 2/3 of the number of EU member states, “unless the Council unanimously decides otherwise”. The members of the Commission will be elected on the basis of a system of equal rotation between the Member States. The Chairman of the Commission is elected by a majority vote in the European Parliament on a proposal from the Council.

Court of Justice of the European Union: Since the creation of this Court in 1952, its main task has been to verify compliance with the law in the interpretation and application of the provisions of treaties. In this regard, the Court, prior to the reform, carried out the following actions: first, reviewed the legality of the actions of EU institutions; secondly, it checked whether the Member States were fulfilling the obligations imposed on them in accordance with Union law; thirdly, he interpreted EU law at the request of national courts and tribunals. Changes to this system are being carried out with caution, as it is assumed that today it is functioning successfully. And yet, there are certain innovations after the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty: all judicial bodies received a new collective name - the Court of Justice of the European Union. This system includes three levels: the highest level - the Court (formerly the Court of Justice of the European Communities); middle link - Tribunal (previously it was the Tribunal of first instance); the third link is specialized tribunals, of which only one has been created so far - the Public Service Tribunal of the European Union. Also, to improve the selection of candidates for posts in the first two levels, a special qualification board has been established. It should also be noted that a significant change in this area is the substantive expansion of the jurisdiction of the courts, which were previously limited to only the "first pillar", which is why the court used to be called the Court of Justice of the European Communities.

European Central Bank: The tasks of the ECB are laid down in the Treaty establishing the European Community. They are detailed in the Statute of the Central Banks of the European System and the European Central Bank. The Statute is a protocol, as an annex to the Treaty. The main goal of the ECB is to maintain price stability. Also, the ECB's goals are: a high level of employment and sustainable economic growth without inflation. The main tasks of the ECB in accordance with the Treaty (Art. 105.2) are: determination and implementation of monetary policy in the euro area; foreign exchange operations management; holding and managing official foreign reserves of the eurozone countries.

Court of Auditors: This institution was created with the aim of exercising control over the finances of the EU. The Court of Accounts constantly monitors whether the funds were properly registered and made public, and whether they were lawfully and regularly disposed of.

EU Ombudsman Institute: examines complaints about ineffective activities of EU institutions and bodies. In turn, this inaction can mean the following: injustice, discrimination, abuse of power, refusal to provide information, etc. The Ombudsman has no right to consider complaints against national, regional and local authorities of member states, complaints against national courts and ombudsmen, as well as complaints against individuals.

The European Union's Office for Personal Data Protection: is a supervisory authority whose purpose is to protect the personal data of employees, their privacy, and to assist in the implementation of appropriate activities within the EU bodies and institutions. The main task of this supervisory authority is to ensure that the processing of data of employees and other persons in EU authorities and institutions is carried out in accordance with the law.

The activities of this authority must comply with two basic principles:

1) the processing of personal data can be carried out only if there are compelling reasons;
2) the person whose personal data is being processed has a certain package of rights that can be enforced in court - for example, the right to be informed about the processing of personal data and the right to correct this data.

European Investment Bank: was established as an EU bank providing long-term loans. The Bank's mission is to promote further integration, balanced development, as well as the economic and social cohesion of the EU member states.

European Investment Fund: is the EU body that specializes in the financial risk of small and medium-sized enterprises.

European Economic and Social Committee: is an advisory body that enables representatives of social groups to express their views on pressing EU issues. These opinions are then sent to the largest institutions - the Council of the EU, the European Commission and the European Parliament. Thus, this body plays a key role in the decision-making process in the EU. The committee was created with the aim of attracting social groups to form a common market. The Single European Act, the Maastricht Treaty, the Amsterdam Treaty, and the Nice Treaty only strengthened the role of this body. The composition of the committee is 344 members, candidates for members of the committee are nominated by national governments and then appointed by the Council of the EU. The internal organization of the committee is as follows: chairman (two vice-chairmen), bureau (37 members), six sections (on agriculture, rural development, environment; economic and monetary union and economic and social cohesion; employment, social security and citizenship; external relations; single market, production and consumption; transport, energy, infrastructure and public awareness); research groups (12 people) and temporary subcommittees (for special issues).

The Committee of the Regions was created for two main reasons: firstly, since most of the EU legal acts were implemented at the local and regional levels, this led to the fact that representatives of local and regional authorities announced the creation of a new EU law; secondly, it was decided that close cooperation between local authorities and citizens would lead to the elimination of gaps in the law. All existing treaties oblige the European Commission and the EU Council to consult with the Committee of the Regions whenever new legislation in various fields is implemented at the regional and local levels. The Maastricht Treaty identified five such areas: economic and social cohesion, infrastructure systems, health, education and culture. The Amsterdam Treaty added the following: employment policy, social policy, environment and transport.

In accordance with the Lisbon Treaty, the post of High Representative for Foreign and Security Policy was additionally created. The European Council, in agreement with the President of the European Commission, by a qualified majority, appoints a high representative of the Union for foreign and security policy. The High Representative implements the common foreign and security policy of the EU by making proposals and actually implementing international obligations at the domestic level of the agreements already reached. He will chair the Council on Foreign Relations. At the same time, the High Representative is also one of the Vice-Presidents of the Commission, whose terms of reference include the EU's external relations with the world.

Thus, the following conclusions can be drawn: the organizational and institutional structure of the EU is a key link in the further development of the EU; EU institutions and bodies play a leading role in both the adoption and implementation of EU law; despite the importance of the existing EU institutions and bodies, as well as their certain conservatism, they represent a rather flexible mechanism within the EU.

European Union goals

The goals of the European Union reflect the will, aspirations, values ​​of the member states and their peoples, in the name of which they established the organization of the European Union and endowed it with powers of authority.

The first thing that we noted in the communitarian method of Monnet-Schumann is the federal goal, which became the "guiding star" of the entire subsequent development of the European Union. This is one of the most important features of the EU law - that its entire essence - its techniques, methods, mechanisms, institutions, legal techniques and tools - everything that makes a unique integration association with the application of law is aimed at achieving those formulated by the member states fundamental goals.

Therefore, for EU law, a teleological approach is of particular importance, in which the main thing is the correct definition of the goal, the clear formulation of the goal, the adjustment of movement towards the goal and the timely and accurate achievement of the goal. Here everything is subordinated to the goal and the constantly refined process of moving towards it.

Therefore, the goals in EU law are not wishes or declarations characteristic of international law, and not programmatic norms-slogans, which are well known to us from the communist and post-communist national legislation.

The European Union raises the norms-goals on a legal pedestal, giving them not only a binding, normative character, but also a supreme force in the hierarchy of legal norms. This is clearly atypical for Russian legal thinking. In the EU and the Court and other institutions and bodies, when making decisions and interpreting and applying legal norms, they must, first of all, proceed from a teleological interpretation, which presupposes an assessment of the goals for which the relevant rule of law was adopted. Therefore, the goal for a long time remains the most important strategic task, according to which all concrete steps of the Union in its integration construction are checked.

The concept of "goals of the European Union" denotes two groups of provisions: first, the goals of creation, and secondly, the goals of the Union.

The goals of the creation of the European Union are indicated in the preamble of the Treaties and include, first of all, the determination “to continue the process of creating an increasingly close union of European peoples” and “the need to create solid foundations for the construction of a future Europe”.

On this basis, other goals are intended to be realized:

Deepening solidarity among the peoples of the member states;
- further development of a democratic and effective institution, economic and social progress;
- carrying out a common foreign policy, including the formation of a common defense policy;
- strengthening the identity and individuality of Europe and "in order to promote peace, security and progress in Europe and around the world", etc.

The preambles of the articles of association are not in themselves sources of legal rules. The provisions enshrined in them are not legally binding. They acquire this by transforming them into the objectives of the activities of the European Union, which are contained in specific articles of the main part of the Union "constitution".

The objectives of the activities of the European Union represent favorable changes in public life, which the organization should strive for in the development and implementation of legal acts and other decisions.

In other words, the goals of the activity are what the Union should strive for when implementing its policies in different areas. Depending on the subject matter, these goals can be general, that is, cover all areas of the Union's activities, and special, that is, relate to certain types of social relations (goals of environmental, cultural, industrial policy, etc.).

Common goals. The general objectives of the activities of the European Union are enshrined in Art. 3 DEC. These goals are uniform for the entire Union, that is, they cover all areas of its activities. Currently, the "Union sets itself" 4 categories of goals.

Political goals - "to promote peace, their values ​​and the well-being of their peoples" (par. 1, article 3 DES). This goal emphasizes the peaceful nature of the created association, indicates the priority nature of the EU's common values ​​listed in Art. 2, and also puts at the forefront the humanitarian aspect associated with caring for the peoples of the Union.

Law enforcement objectives - “The Union offers its citizens a space of freedom, security and justice without internal borders, within which the free movement of persons is ensured, in conjunction with appropriate measures for the control of external borders, asylum, immigration, as well as crime prevention and combating this phenomenon "(Par. 2 article 3 DES). The European Union, in pursuit of this goal, carries out activities in the field of visa, immigration, asylum policy, as well as the publication of legislation on justice in civil and criminal matters. The EU has its own common criminal policy.

Socio-economic and cultural goals are also contained in paragraphs 3 and 4 of Art. 3 DEC. This is a fairly extensive group of common goals for the EU. First, by formulating economic goals, the Union seeks to “ensure sustainable development of Europe based on balanced economic growth and price stability, a highly competitive and social market economy, striving for full employment and social progress, and a high level of protection and quality improvement. environment. It promotes scientific and technological progress. "

To achieve these goals, the Union creates an internal market (first sentence of paragraph 1, par. 3, Art. 3 DES). In addition, separately in paragraph 4 of Art. 3 DES refers to the creation of "an economic and monetary union, the monetary unit of which is the euro." At the same time (contrary to what is sometimes asserted in the media), the domestic market and the single currency do not in themselves act as the goals to which the Union is striving. According to these articles, both the common market and the economic and monetary union are the means to achieve the EU's goals.

Secondly, the aim of the EU is of a socio-economic nature “to promote the economic, social and territorial cohesion and solidarity of the Member States”, enshrined in par. 3 pairs. 3 tbsp. 3 DEC. To achieve it, the Union conducts regional policy, creates special funds to promote the balanced development of regions.

Thirdly, social goals are enshrined in par. 2 pairs. 3 Art. 3 DES - The Union “fights against disadvantage and discrimination, promotes social justice and social protection, equality of women and men, solidarity between generations and the protection of the rights of the child ”. To achieve these goals, the Union pursues a general social and employment policy.

Fourthly, the Union "respects the wealth of its cultural and linguistic diversity and cares about the preservation and development of the European cultural heritage" in accordance with par. 4 pairs. 3 tbsp. 3 DES, which reflects the cultural goals of the EU, achieved through the common policy in the field of culture and education.

Based on the above list, we can conclude that the goals of the European Union as a whole in the socio-economic and cultural sphere are to improve the well-being of the peoples of this organization. Accordingly, they meet the general purpose set out in par. 1 tbsp. 3 DEC.

Foreign policy goals are consolidated by par. 5 tbsp. 3 DEC. In accordance with it, “in its relations with the rest of the world, the Union affirms and promotes its values ​​and interests and contributes to the protection of its citizens”. The Union “promotes peace, security, sustainable development of the planet, solidarity and mutual respect of peoples, free and fair trade, the eradication of poverty and the protection of human rights, including the rights of the child, as well as the strict observance and development of international law, especially the observance of the principles of the Charter of the Organization United Nations ". These provisions are developed by the norms on the external competence of the EU and the norms on the common foreign and security policy, as an integral part of it.

Special purposes. The special goals are those that determine the content of individual areas of the Union's activities. Basically, they are enshrined in the provisions of TFEU, dedicated to specific areas of its policy.

For example, the objectives of the EU environmental policy are:

- “preservation, protection and improvement of the quality of the natural environment;
- protection of human health;
- prudent and rational use of natural resources;
- assistance for international scene measures aimed at addressing regional or global problems the environment, and in particular the fight against climate change ”(Art. 191 TFEU).

The goal of the EU science and technology policy is “to strengthen its scientific and technological foundations by creating a European scientific research space with free movement of researchers, scientific knowledge and technologies, to create favorable conditions for the development of its competitiveness, including the competitiveness of its industry, as well as to promote scientific and research activities that are recognized as necessary in accordance with other chapters of the Treaties ”(Art. 179 TFEU), etc.

The legal force and significance of the norms-goals of the constituent agreements. Being enshrined in the sources of primary law, the goal norms have the highest legal force in the legal system of the European Union. In accordance with these goals, all acts of current legislation, as well as other decisions of the Union's bodies, should be adopted. The practice of implementing EU legislation should also follow.

The meaning of the norms-goals in the law and policy of the European Union is twofold.

On the one hand, the presence of legally fixed goals (both general and specific) limits the scope of the organization's activities. Fixed in steam. 6 tbsp. 3 TEN, the principle of legitimate aim, within the framework of the principle of legality, states: "The Union shall achieve its objectives by appropriate means within the limits of the competence that is given to it in the Treaties." Consequently, the actions and decisions of EU bodies should not be aimed at achieving other (including personal) goals than those enshrined in Art. 3 and other target norms of the memorandum of association. Failure to comply with a legitimate aim may serve as a basis for the cancellation of a legal act by the EU Court (there were no precedents for cancellation of EU regulations, directives and other EU acts solely on this basis, however, when making decisions, the Court, as a rule, seeks to take into account the target orientation of the contested act).

It should be noted at the same time that the norms-goals of the Treaties are formulated in a very abstract way and can be interpreted in the broadest possible way.

On the other hand, target norms can not only restrict, but also expand the scope of activities of the European Union. This is due to the so-called “implied powers” ​​of the European Union. Even if an issue is not directly attributed to the EU, its institutions, nevertheless, can regulate it by their acts, since, in their opinion, this will serve the optimal achievement of the objectives of the EU.

Finally, by virtue of para. 3 pairs. 3 tbsp. 4 DES "the member states create favorable conditions for the Union to fulfill its tasks and refrain from any measures that could jeopardize the achievement of the Union's objectives."

The Council of the European Union - EUFOR - is an intergovernmental institution made up of executive officials, usually at the rank of minister.

Usually there is one representative at the ministerial level, authorized to act on behalf of the national government and to advocate for the interests of their state, bound by the instructions of the national governments. Councils are formed depending on a specific issue: council on justice and home affairs, council on general issues and external relations, environment, health care.

The Council of Heads of State and Government may disappear because the LS introduces the presidency:

The only institution that does not have a permanent membership;
- the only institution that does not have a permanent term of office;
- the only institution where there is no chairmanship (individual). The activities of the state are carried out in the order of rotation following in sequence, starting from the second half of the year - Sweden, Spain, Belgium, Hungary, Poland;
- the post of chairman is not elective;
- rotation within six months, and the sequence is determined by the Council itself;
- special decisions are made - a special document establishing the procedure for exercising the chairmanship of the Council.

According to the Treaty on the European Union, it is the state - the President of the EUFOR - the highest representative of the EU on issues of common foreign and security policy.

Top Representative:

Conducts all international negotiations on behalf of the EU;
- makes official statements on behalf of the EU.

Nowadays there are proposals for SES, among them:

1.the decision to do everything collectively;
2. to continue the leadership of the SEC up to 1.5 years;
3. take away general political authority.

Functions and powers of the SEC:

Common law legislator;
- issues of a budgetary and financial nature - together with the European Parliament;
- approval of the budget of some EU bodies (Europol, for example);
- adoption of general guidelines for economic policy;
- guidelines for employment policy in the EU, reducing unemployment;
- approval of legal acts of general foreign and security policy, in the field of cooperation between the police and the judiciary (2nd and 3rd pillars of the EU);
- consent to conclude international agreements;
- consent to the appointment to certain positions in EU institutions and bodies, including:
- Chairman of the CEC;
- European commissioners;
- members of the EU JV;
- members of the economic and social committee;
- convene a conference on the revision of the constituent documents of the EU and can independently amend some articles of these constituent documents without the consent of the EU member states.

When the Council of the EU makes a decision by a qualified majority, each member state has the right to use a certain number of votes.

Council of the EU composition structure of powers

The Council of the European Union (Council) is an integral part of the institutional system of the EU. Its status and powers are defined directly in the constituent agreements.

The Council is the leading institution of the EU, which aims to ensure that the national interests of the member states are aligned with the achievement of the goals and objectives of the integration associations.

The Council is composed of plenipotentiary representatives of the governments of the member states (as a general rule at the ministerial level), who, by virtue of their official status, have the right to participate in decisions binding the states they represent. The most general questions and questions of a political nature are dealt with by the Council, which is convened by foreign ministers or ministers specially in charge of European affairs. It is often referred to as the General Affairs Council or the Council of Foreign Ministers. However, in those cases when economic issues are being resolved, such a Council meets mainly at the level of the ministers of economics, while solving financial issues - at the level of finance ministers or both.

The Council is endowed with broad powers. Identifies three main areas of activity of the Council and their respective powers. First, the Council ensures the coordination of the general economic policies of the member states. Second, the Council is empowered to make binding decisions.

He may delegate the authority to implement the decisions taken by him to the European Commission. At the same time, the Council reserves the right, if it deems it necessary, to directly ensure the execution of its decisions. The Council coordinates the general economic policy. These are employment, health care, education, cultural issues, etc. The Council is in charge of financial policy issues. He is vested with particularly important powers in the area of ​​CFSP and CESDP. He also provides general leadership in the fight against crime, ensures the coordination and cooperation of the police and courts in the criminal law field.

The decisions taken by the Council are binding on all member states. The common position on foreign and security policy developed and adopted by the Council should serve as the basis for the implementation of national foreign policy actions and the foreign policy of the member states as a whole in relation to certain geographic regions or in relation to certain problems of international relations.

Integration of the European Union

Today the EU states have become the main economic partner of Russia. In 2009, the EU countries accounted for more than 50% of Russian foreign trade, as well as over 50% of investments. In turn, the EU countries are the largest market for Russian export goods. In addition, with a strong political, industrial, financial and trade potential, the EU plays an important role in maintaining stability in the world and the region.

European integration has gone through several stages in its development.

The first was the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC). The tendency of the countries of Europe that emerged after the Second World War to work together to restore the destroyed economy and led to the creation of an integration interstate organization... The agreement establishing the European Coal and Steel Community was signed on April 18, 1951 by representatives of Germany, Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

The ECSC Treaty recognized as subject to abolition: import and export duties, as well as quantitative restrictions on the movement of goods in the member states; discriminatory measures against producers, buyers and consumers; targeted subsidies or assistance provided by ECSC states; market sharing practice. Four main bodies have been established to coordinate integration within the ECSC: Council (representing Member States); Commission (supranational executive body); Assembly and Court.

At the end of the 1950s, having summarized the experience of the ECSC, the participating states decided to expand the sphere of their interaction and improve the form of integration. To this end, on March 25, 1957, the Treaty establishing the European Economic Community (EEC) was signed in Rome.

The EEC Agreement provided for the following measures: elimination of customs duties and quantitative restrictions on the import and export of goods between the member countries; the introduction of a common customs tariff and a common trade policy in relation to third states; elimination of obstacles to the free movement of persons, services and capital; maintaining a common agricultural and transport policy; approximation of national legislation.

For the functioning of the EEC, a separate Council and Commission were created. The Assembly and the Court have become one for the EEC and the ECSC.

On March 25, 1957, these six states also signed the Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom).

The tasks of Euratom were declared as follows: creation of conditions for the emergence and rapid growth of the nuclear industry, assistance in raising living standards in states and the development of mutual exchanges with other countries; development of safety standards to protect public health and control over their implementation; ensuring the creation of installations for fundamental research in the field of nuclear energy; overseeing the regular and equitable supply of nuclear fuel to consumers in the Community; a guarantee of the impossibility of using nuclear materials for purposes other than those for which they are intended; ensuring widespread marketing and access to technical means through the creation of a common market for special equipment and logistics, free movement of capital for investments in the nuclear industry, as well as through the free choice of a place of work for specialists within the Community. The agreement established the norms of sanitary protection of public health from the threat of radiation.

The solution of the tasks assigned to Eurat was ensured by its institutions - the European Parliament, the Council, the Commission, the Court, the Chamber of Auditors.

In accordance with the Treaty, the Joint Center for Nuclear Research was created to ensure the conduct of research and the development of a uniform nuclear terminology, as well as a single standardization system. To ensure on equal terms the supply of ore, raw materials and special fissionable materials, a special body was created - the Agency, which) "is given the right to choose ores, raw materials and special fissionable materials, as well as the exclusive right to conclude contracts for their supply. Fissile materials were declared the property of the Community.

For violation of the provisions of the Treaty by individuals, the possibility of applying sanctions in the form of: warning; deprivation of financial or technical assistance; transfer of management of an enterprise to a person or a collegium appointed by common agreement between the Commission and the state in whose jurisdiction the enterprise is located; complete or partial withdrawal of raw materials or special fissile materials.

Thus, in 1957, two more Communities were created, regulating cooperation between states on a wide range of issues. However, since the same states participated in all three Communities, and each Community had identical bodies with similar powers, even before the entry into force of the EEC and Euratom Treaties, it was decided to make the Assembly and the Court the same for all three associations. The Commission and Council for each Community have temporarily remained different. These provisions were enshrined in the Convention on General Institutions (1957).

Duplication of powers of the main bodies of the Community did not facilitate their work, therefore on April 8, 1965 in Brussels, the member states signed the Treaty establishing a single Council and a single Commission of the European Communities. This agreement is also known as the "Merger Agreement". The merger agreement united three Commissions into one and three Councils into one. The resulting bodies are called the "Commission of the European Communities" and the "Council of the European Communities".

The next step towards integration was the expansion of the membership of the European Communities. On January 22, 1972, the Final Document was signed, providing for the accession to the Communities of Great Britain, Ireland, Denmark and Norway. However, following the referendum, Norway refused to join the Community. Thus, on January 1, 1973, three new states became members of the Communities.

Greece joined the Communities in 1981, and in 1985 Greenland withdrew from the Communities following a referendum (Greenland was not formally a member of the Communities, but being associated with Denmark, it was part of the Communities).

In 1985, the EEC countries adopted the Agreement on the gradual abolition of checks at common borders, which in 1990 was supplemented by the Convention on the Application of the Schengen Agreement of June 14, 1985 between the governments of the Benelux Economic Union, the Federal Republic of Germany and the French Republic on the gradual abolition of checks at common borders (Schengen, June 19, 1990). These treaties regulated the issues of unimpeded movement of goods, labor and capital across borders. They are called "Schengen Agreements" (Great Britain and Ireland do not participate in them). Formally, the Schengen Agreements were incorporated into European law by the 1997 Amsterdam Treaty (see below).

In 1986, Spain and Portugal joined the Communities.

The entry of new states into the Communities required a serious improvement of their institutions. Therefore, a treaty was adopted, called the "Single European Act" (EEA) (Luxembourg, February 17, 1986 - The Hague, February 28, 1986). In the new edition, the EEA outlined the provisions of the constituent agreements of the communities, while the Communities were transferred powers in the field of environmental protection, culture and education, health protection, technological and social policy, a single customs space. The Act expanded the powers of the European Parliament in the field of rule-making and introduced a procedure for "cooperation" (with the Commission). The communities were additionally transferred powers in the field of environmental protection, culture and education, health protection, technological and social policy, a common customs space. In addition, the Council of Heads of State and Government of European States (European Council), which has existed since 1974, received the status of an institution of Communities.

Until the end of the 80s. XX century. The communities developed rapidly and enjoyed a wide international legal capacity. They independently participated in international relations, concluded international treaties, exchanged diplomatic missions with states, etc. Community law was binding on the EU member states and in many cases on their citizens and legal entities. The norms of European law were directly applied by the national authorities of the participating countries. The European Commission was empowered to impose penalties on enterprises and citizens in case of violation of Community law.

European law received direct action on the territory of the participating countries and in the sphere of delegated powers - a priority over the national law of the EU countries, which went beyond the "traditional" competence of international organizations.

These circumstances gave rise to some among European politicians and prompted them to further reform the Communities.

On February 7, 1992, the Treaty on the European Union was signed in Maastricht. It entered into force on January 1, 1993. The Maastricht Treaty consolidated important changes, which were seen by many as "a movement towards a federal Europe." The European Economic Community was renamed the European Community. A new organizational structure- European Union. The creation of the Union presupposed not the elimination of the Communities, but their improvement and meant a new stage in European integration.

The EU was based on three "pillars": three Communities; General Foreign and Security Policy; Cooperation in the field of justice and home affairs. The second and third pillars were not international organizations; they were "cooperation" - decisions were made by the states themselves collectively, and not by the bodies of the Communities.

The objectives of the EU were: to promote sustainable economic and social progress by creating a space without internal borders, economic and social cohesion and the creation of an economic and monetary union, including the introduction of a single currency; implementation of a common foreign policy and a common security policy with the prospect of creating a common defense force; strengthening the protection of the rights and interests of citizens of EU states through the introduction of citizenship of the Union; development of cooperation in the field of justice and home affairs.

The objectives of the common foreign and security policy of the Union were declared: protection of the basic interests and independence of the Union; strengthening the security of the Union and its member states; maintaining peace and strengthening international security in accordance with the principles of the UN Charter, the CSCE Final Act and the 1990 Charter of Paris for a New Europe; promoting international cooperation; the development and consolidation of democracy and the rule of law; and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.

The goals of the EU were declared not only to create a political, trade and economic union, ensure free movement of goods and services, as well as labor migration within the EU, but also the functioning of a single currency, a joint foreign policy and policy in the field of international security, etc.

Immediately after the entry into force of the Maastricht Treaty on the legal nature of the EU, several points of view were expressed. According to one of them, the EU is a federal state-like entity of the united countries. According to another point of view, the EU is an international organization with elements of a confederation. Still others considered the EU special an international organization... The second point of view seems to be more reasonable. Along with the existence of the EU, three Communities with single bodies were formally preserved. The scope of the powers of the Communities depended on the treaty under which they operated. In this sense, the EU is a special form of interstate cooperation and is based on the principle "none of the Union states can be forced to take any action without its consent." In addition, the EU countries have not lost their sovereignty, including in the field of national lawmaking. The legal nature of the EU has remained the same: it is an international organization.

In 1995, Sweden, Austria and Finland became EU members.

In 1996, a conference of the EU member states was convened to consider the provisions of the Treaty “subject to revision”. The revision process of the Maastricht Treaty ended on June 17, 1997 with the signing of the Treaty amending the Treaty on the European Union, the Treaties establishing the European Communities and some related acts (known as the Amsterdam Treaty). The Amsterdam Treaty entered into force in 1999.

In 2000, the Treaty was signed in Nice, which amended and supplemented the provisions of the founding documents of the EU. (The Nice Treaty entered into force on February 1, 2003).

On December 7, 2000, the European Parliament, Council and Commission solemnly proclaimed the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, which enshrined certain human rights in the EU (in addition to the 1950 Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms).

As a result, after a series of partial reforms, the EU member states came to the conclusion that it was necessary to radically reform the legal foundations of this organization. The forthcoming enlargement of the EU, which requires serious adjustments to the integration mechanisms, is also prompting such a step.

According to the Declaration "The Future of the European Union", approved at the end of 2001, in order to prepare and discuss a package of reforms, a temporary representative body was formed - the "Convention on the Future of the European Union". The Convention includes representatives of all member states (three people from the state: two parliamentarians and a government representative) and the EU as a whole (16 MEPs and two representatives of the European Commission). The Convention was tasked with developing a draft of the future EU constituent document. The Convention made a choice in favor of replacing the existing founding treaties with a single document called "The Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe" (hereinafter - the European Constitution).

In 2002, the Treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community was terminated. It was decided not to renew it, since the relevant issues have actually become the subject of the European Community. Thus, since that time, only two Communities have been active.

In April 2003, the Treaty on the accession of ten new states to the EU and the conditions for such accession was signed. Thus, the EU has been replenished with 10 new members. There are 25 states in the EU.

On October 29, 2004, in Rome, the heads of state and government of the EU member states finally signed the Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe. However, in the past referendums, the peoples of France and the Netherlands spoke out against, as a result of which the fate of the Euro-Constitution was determined. It became obvious that the document in this form would not be adopted.

In 2005, an agreement was signed on the accession to the EU for Bulgaria and Romania. Since January 1, 2007, there are already 27 states in the European Union.

After the confusion caused by the failure of the European Constitution, in 2007 the European Council decided to develop a new document. The draft of this document was proposed to the EU members on June 23, 2007 at a specially convened international conference... After serious revision, the final text of the Treaty Amending the Treaty on the European Union and the Treaty establishing the European Community were prepared. This treaty was eventually adopted in Lisbon on December 13, 2007 (hereinafter the Lisbon Treaty).

The Lisbon Treaty has gone through a difficult ratification process in member states. Ireland distinguished itself, the population of which voted "the strait" in the referendum, seriously alarming the European bureaucracy. Only a repeated referendum in Ireland in October 2009 allowed the Lisbon Treaty to come into effect on December 1, 2009.

European Union problems

V recent times Much has been written about the statements of billionaire George Soros, which are related to the “drop” of the European currency to the level of parity with the US dollar, that is, to achieve the following equality: 1 euro = 1 US dollar. Experts draw numerous conclusions related to the statements of the billionaire, instead of trying to take the place of the largest "currency speculator", analyze his logic of "choosing a victim" and understand the essence of the problem - what are the true reasons for the fall of the euro and how the European exchange rate can be raised currency?

"Skillful hands" of the media have led to the fact that only Greece is the priority and main problem of the European Union, which in an instant became the culprit of the second wave global crisis, depreciation of the euro and the possible collapse of the European Union. At the same time, there is one fundamental figure that clearly makes it clear that someone deliberately substitutes Greece for the so-called "European reason". This figure is as follows - the share of Greece's GDP in the total European GDP is only 2%.

What are the true causes of the crisis in the European Union, where are its sore spots and weak areas that investors must take into account when investing? In the recent past, only the high style was applied to the European Union - the largest interstate coalition modern world, uniting a population of about 500 million people and producing about 30% of world GDP. In addition, the European Union controlled 17% of world trade - a huge solvent area. In turn, the euro is a new world currency, the currency modern society... It was believed that it was the euro that would become the global currency after the collapse of the United States (this is exactly what the European Union expected).

However, the onset of the global financial crisis of 2008 opened the eyes of many politicians, economists and financial analysts, who quickly gave the palm to the opposite extreme. Well-known and not so well-known media chose headlines like "European pique", "failed project", "goodbye, European Union" and so on. Headlines like this have disheartened Europeans and foreign investors. Many conclusions of authoritative international experts were associated with the collapse of the monetary union, and extremely categorical ones - with the collapse of the European Union itself. The disastrous scenario of the European Union was also supported by astrologers and ... special services. According to Globa's prediction, the European Union should cease to exist by 2020, that this coalition will be split into several European Unions, which will be the South European, North European, Eastern European, etc. Even earlier, the CIA (the secret service of the EU's main competitor) called Globa the same time of the possible collapse of the European Union.

What are the factors that weaken the European Union, what is the nature of this tangle of intractable contradictions, and where is the root of these contradictions? Why did D. Soros, 18 years later, decide to re-introduce his mechanism of phenomenal success, but already "playing" not with the Bank of England, but with the European Central Bank?

Consider the complex of "pitfalls" of modern Europe:

1) The first problem for the EU is the “mechanical” unification of countries. The reason for the "mechanization" was the hasty enlargement of the European Union: 2004 - 15 countries, 2007 - 27 states. Such a rapid increase in the number of EU members violated the initial stability of the architecture of the countries of the so-called "old Europe", which by that time had managed to establish close economic and political relations.
2) The next problematic factor is youth and incompleteness of the project. Many fundamental directions were not initially discussed, documented and tested. In this regard, the EU regulatory framework requires a lot of refinement and optimization, based on the existing realities.
3) Crisis phenomena in the economy are the third negative factor that violates the model of stable functioning of the European Union. The crisis caused a rise in the degree of contradictions among the members of the European Union. EU members have not yet developed a specific strategic model of action that would allow them to support each other in times of crisis. In other words, the EU gave a signal that “the rescue of drowning people is the work of the drowning people themselves”.
4) Foreign policy contradictions between the members of the European Union. Despite the artificial unity, acute conflicts often arise within the EU, the parties of which are "Old Europe", which seeks to create a new international center of power, and "New Europe", which sometimes takes a pro-American, anti-Russian position. Great Britain often adjoins the "New Europe".
5) The fifth group of problems of the European Union is associated with historical, cultural and mental differences between the EU members. The EU is at the initial stage (the stage of emergence) of creating a model of a common European identity. Since many states in the EU have repeatedly confronted each other in various wars over the entire period of history, an unspoken agreement was adopted - to exclude historical grievances. Recently, however, this agreement has often been ignored.

European Union agreements

In the European Union, there are two special law-making procedures that formalize the process of the Union's accession to international treaties. The first procedure is applied when concluding international agreements by the European Community, i.e. within the powers of the first pillar. The second - when concluding international treaties for the implementation of the goals and objectives of the common foreign and security policy, as well as cooperation between the police and courts in the criminal law sphere, i.e. when exercising powers on the second and third pillars.

The description of the procedure for concluding international treaties by the European Community is devoted to Art. 300 of the EU Treaty. It applies in cases where the Treaty provides for the possibility of concluding agreements between the Community and one or more states or an international organization.

The procedure is initiated by the Commission with the provision of recommendations to the Council regarding the conclusion of an international agreement. Having considered the recommendations, the Council empowers the Commission by a qualified majority to negotiate. The Commission shall conduct relevant international negotiations, in consultation in their process with ad hoc committees appointed by the Council to carry out this task.

At the end of the negotiations, the Council concludes an international treaty. As a general rule, a consultation procedure is used. At the same time, the Council, depending on the urgency of the issue, may set a time limit for giving an opinion to the European Parliament. The omission of the deadline allows the Council to act in the absence of such an opinion. The Council approves the decision to conclude a contract by a qualified majority vote, except in the case of agreements establishing an association and agreements covering an area in which unanimity is required for the adoption of internal regulations. In such a case, unanimity is required in the Council.

There are also exceptions to general rule on the use of the consultation procedure when concluding international agreements of the EU. In some cases, the authorization procedure (positive) is applied.

Such cases are:

Conclusion of agreements establishing an association;
- conclusion of other agreements establishing a specific institutional framework by organizing cooperation procedures;
- conclusion of agreements within the framework of the general trade policy;
- the conclusion of agreements of significant budgetary importance for the Community;
- conclusion of agreements entailing amendments to the act, approved on the basis of the procedure of joint decision-making.

The time frame for obtaining the consent of the European Parliament may be specially stipulated by the Council and the European Parliament itself.

The procedure for concluding international agreements of the EU allows several optional stages. The first such stage occurs when the agreement to be concluded entails the amendment of the EU Treaty. Prior to the conclusion of an agreement, such amendments must be adopted in accordance with the procedure applied for amending the constituent acts of the Union and set out in Art. 48 of the Treaty on European Union.

Another optional stage occurs when the Council, Commission or Member States apply to the Court to determine whether a proposed agreement is compatible with the provisions of the EU Treaty. In the event of a negative opinion of the Court, the agreement may enter into force only in accordance with Art. 48 of the Treaty on European Union.

A notable feature of the procedure for concluding international agreements of the EU is that it includes other law-making procedures. The specificity of joining international treaties acts as a kind of superstructure for one of the general procedures used depending on the specific case.

The procedure for concluding international treaties of the European Union in the areas of CFSP and ATP is enshrined in Art. 24 of the Treaty on the European Union. It is carried out as follows. The Council unanimously grants the presiding Member State the authority to initiate negotiations to conclude the necessary agreement. The presiding Member State, with the assistance of the Commission, shall conduct the relevant negotiations. At the end of international negotiations, the presiding member state submits to the Council a recommendation to conclude an international treaty. The Council, based on this recommendation, by a decision taken unanimously, shall conclude such a treaty.

It should be noted that if the international treaties of the European Community are unconditionally binding on all institutions of the Community and the Member States (Article 300 § 7 of the EU Treaty), then the Union's international agreements in the spheres of CFSP and ATP may apply to member states with exceptions. First, the representative of a member state on the Council can declare that he must submit to his own constitutional procedures, and then the agreement will not be binding on the member state he represents. Secondly, other members of the Council in this case may agree that the agreement applies to them temporarily.

It should be noted that the European Parliament does not participate in the procedure for concluding international agreements in the areas of CFSP and ATP, and the Council occupies a dominant position. The role of the Commission in this case is insignificant.

After the entry into force of the Lisbon Treaty, the European Union will have a single international legal personality and conclude all international treaties directly on its own behalf (see question 17). The above procedure for concluding international treaties of the European Community will apply to the Union as a whole, which will entail an increase in the role of the European Parliament and the Commission.

At the same time, international treaties on common foreign and security policy (the former second pillar) will continue to be concluded according to a special procedure, as a rule, at the suggestion of a new official of the Union - the High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy.

European Union bodies

General

The bodies of the European Union are made up of community bodies. In matters of the first column, the communities enjoy an independent legislative power, which in European states belongs to parliaments elected in elections; the executive branch owned by governments; and jurisdiction held by independent courts.

In the organizational system, they tried to find a balance between the supranational form of decision-making and the national interests of the member states, and, on the other hand, between representative bodies elected through democratic elections and bodies appointed administratively.

At the highest level, the activities and development of the Union are governed by The European Council, which consists of the heads of state and government of the members of the Union. The European Council does not make practical decisions in matters within the competence of the Union. Its task is to stimulate the development of the Union and outline a common political line of development. As a summit meeting of heads of state, the Council actually defines the tasks of the Union and its relations with the member states. The Council convenes regularly at least once every six months, during the six-month chairmanship of each of the member states. Finland will hold the Presidency of the European Union from early July 1999 until the end of the year. The main institutions of the Union are The European Parliament, The Council, The Commission, and The Court of Justice. The Commission and the Court, and partly the Parliament, represent exclusively allied interests. Achievement of national goals, in turn, is facilitated by the Council.

European Parliament

The European Parliament is a representative body with a total of 626 members, who are directly elected in each of the member states. Sixteen deputies are elected from Finland. Members of the European Parliament create their parliamentary factions on the basis of political orientation, not nationality.

Parliament participates in the selection of members of other institutions and may recall the Commission with a qualified majority of votes. It is an advisory body to the Council and the Commission. Parliament participates in legislative work as a body giving its opinions and, in part, making decisions jointly with the Council. Parliament can make it difficult for the Council to make decisions by issuing negative opinions. Parliament participates in the discussion of the budget of the Union and makes the final decisions on expenditures at discretion. Parliament confirms, for its part, the admission of new members to the Union. To carry out practical work, the Parliament is divided into commissions, one of which deals, in particular, with issues of working conditions.

Advice

The effective decision-making body is the Council of the European Union. The Council (Council of Ministers) consists of the ministers of the governments of the member states in the composition, depending on the discussed range of issues. The Council of General Affairs deals with the most important issues within the competence of the Council. It is composed of the foreign ministers of the member states. Occupational safety issues are dealt with by the respective ministers of the Member States in charge of OSH - the ministers of labor or social security.

Typically, each council meets at least two formal meetings and one informal meeting during one chairmanship. The Council may meet simultaneously in two or more numerous assemblies.

One minister from each member state is represented on the Council. However, the number of votes of members of the Council depends on the size and economic importance of the country. The ministers of Germany, France, Italy and England, for example, have 10 votes on the council, while the ministers of Ireland, Denmark and Finland have only three votes each. The number of votes of other countries ranges from four to eight.

The total number of votes is 87. For a qualified majority, 62 votes are required. Labor protection laws are approved by a qualified majority on the Council. All issues put forward at the Council are discussed in the Committee of Permanent Representatives of Member States (Coreper), which consists mainly of ambassadors.

Preparation of issues, prior to their consideration in the Committee of Permanent Representatives, is carried out in committees and working groups. Experts from central administrations and representative offices of member states participate in the discussion of issues in working groups. In particular, many of the employees of the Ministry of Labor of Finland present here participate in the discussion of occupational safety issues. In the working groups, all proposals are thoroughly tested, and only those issues are referred to the Committee of Permanent Representatives on which there is no unanimity in the working groups. Agreed issues are generally not considered by the Committee of Permanent Representatives. Only issues that remain open in the Committee of Permanent Representatives are transferred from the Committee of Permanent Representatives to special consideration by the Council. From the Council's point of view, the main emphasis in the decision-making process is on preparing questions in working groups. In them, the representatives of the member states naturally act within the framework of the powers granted by their ministers.

Commission

The main working body of the European Union is the Commission. It consists of 20 commissioners who are appointed by a single agreement of the governments of the member states for a five-year term. At least one representative from each member country must be represented on the Commission. However, the members of the Commission in their work do not represent the member country, but exclusively the Union.

In the development of Community legislation, the Commission has the exclusive right of initiative. All proposals must go through the Commission. During the discussion, the Commission may change its proposal or remove it from the agenda. The Commission is responsible for the implementation of Community decisions, monitors compliance with Union laws in the member states and, if required, initiates an action in the courts of the European Communities against the member state for violation of membership obligations.

The Commission is divided into 23 main directorates on the issues discussed. The Commission's proposals are usually based on legislative drafts, which are carefully weighed in the relevant Directorate of the Commission and in its working groups. Representatives of the Commission have the right to participate in the discussion of the proposal in all competent bodies of the Union.

Other organs

The Court of Justice of the European Communities ensures the correct application and interpretation of Community law. The audit court oversees the spending and management of the working bodies. Together with the central banks of the member states, the Central Bank of Europe constitutes the central banking system of Europe. It is expected that over time, the Central Bank of Europe will have the exclusive right to issue Treasury notes.

In addition to the Parliament, the representative bodies are the Committee for the Regions and the Committee for Economic and social issues which provide the Council and the Commission with non-binding opinions. They represent the knowledge of Member States in different fields and regions.