- Home
- Definitions and methods
- Definitions
- European Union / EU
European Union / EU
Definition
Created on 1st January 1993 by application of the Maastricht Treaty, the European Union (EU) superseded the EEC (European Economic Community) in the European construction process. The EU is an intergovernmental union, but is not a State intended to replace the existing Member States. It is a legal entity that is separate from the States that compose it and has its own competencies (common agricultural policy, fisheries, trade policy, etc.), and competencies it shares with its Member States. It is recognised as being an international organisation.
On the economic level, it has a Customs union and, for Member States belonging in the Eurozone, a single currency, the Euro. The Union is therefore a hybrid supranational entity marked both by federalism and by the intergovernmental approach. Today, the European Union countries are 27 in number.
Note
Historically, the roots of the European Union go back to the Second World War. In the early years, there was cooperation between six countries, mainly on trade and the economy. The EU initially comprised 12 countries (France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, The Netherlands, Luxembourg, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Denmark, Greece, Spain and Portugal) and has gradually been extended since.
