The European Union

A BRIEF PRESENTATION OF

THE EUROPEAN UNION

More than 50 Years of Peace, Prosperity and Partnership

The European Union

Pre-1945:

The idea of Europe

Previous unifications based on force: Roman
Empire, Nazi Germany
First peaceful proposal: Creation of a union of
Christian nations against the Turks (1464).
Map of the Greatest Extent
of the Roman Empire

Idea of some form of unified Europe: Victor Hugo...

(stronger after World War I).
Between World Wars: Pan-European Movement

Large areas of Europe had previously been unified by empires built on force, such as the
Roman Empire, Frankish Empire, Holy Roman Empire, the First French Empire and Nazi
Germany.
After the Fall of Constantinople to the Turks in 1453 A.D., the first proposal for peaceful
methods of unifying Europe against a common enemy emerged. A creation of a union of
Christian nations against the Turks in 1464 was proposed.
In the 19th century. Napoleon introduces the concept United States of Europe. This
concept was held by many important people (Victor Hugo (1849) A day will come when
we shall see... the United States of America and the United States of Europe face to
face).
Such ideas became greater in Western Europe following World War I, with the massive
loss of life it entailed. An example of an organization formed between the wars to promote
the idea of European Union is the Pan-Europa movement (1923. It still exists. It
presented the idea of a unified European State. The stated goal of the organization is the
unity of a Christian Europe. The International Paneuropean Union has four main basic
principles: liberalism, Christianity, social responsibility and pro-Europeanism).
It was not until after World War II that real steps were taken in Western Europe.
The devastating impact of the World Wars did not create such an ideological effect in
Russia, because it adhered to an ideology of its own, the Communism.

The European Union

1951:

Peace forged from cold steel

After World War II, the aim was to secure peace.
Churchills call for a United States of Europe
(1946)
First pan-European Organization: Council of Europe
(1949)
Jean Monnet and other leaders with
the first European ingot of steel

Treaty of Paris (1951). Creation of European

Coal and Steel Community to run heavy
industries (coal and steel) under common
management.
Six founding countries Belgium, the Federal
Republic of Germany, France, Italy, Luxembourg
and the Netherlands

World War II from 1939 to 1945 saw a human and economic cost which hit Europe
hardest. It demonstrated the horrors of war and also of extremism .
To ensure Germany could never threaten the peace again, its heavy industry was partly
dismantled and its main coal-producing regions were detached, or put under international
control.
In 1948, the Congress of Europe was carried under Winston Churchill's chairman. The
congress discussed the formation of a new Council of Europe. However it exposed a
division between unionist (opposed to a loss of sovereignty) and federalist (desiring a
federal Europe) supporters. This unionist-federalist divide was reflected in the
establishment of the Council of Europe in 1949. The Council was designed with two main
political bodies, one composed of governments, the other of national members of
parliament. It was based in Strasbourg. It is an organisation dealing with democracy and
human rights issues
French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman proposed a community to integrate the coal
and steel industries of Europe - these being the two elements necessary to make
weapons of war.
On the basis of that speech, France, Italy, the Benelux countries (Belgium, Netherlands
and Luxembourg) together with West Germany signed the Treaty of Paris (1951) creating
the European Coal and Steel Community. It lifted some restrictions on German industrial
productivity. The United Kingdom refused to participate due to a rejection of supranational
authority. It gave birth to the first institutions, such as the High Authority (now the
European Commission) and the Common Assembly (now the European Parliament).

The European Union

1951
Founding
Members
Belgium
France
Germany
Italy
Luxembourg
Netherlands

The European Union

1957:

Expanding cooperation
Treaty of Rome (1957).

Signing of the Treaty of Rome

Creation of the European

Economic Community (EEC)
or common market.
Creation of the European Atomic
Energy Community (Euratom).
Three Communities

the European Defense Community was drawn up and signed on 27 May 1952. It would
combine national armies and allow West Germany to rearm under the control of the new
Community. However in 1954, the treaty was rejected by the French National Assembly.
The rejection also derailed further plans for a European Political Community, being drawn
up by members of the Common Assembly which would have created a federation to
ensure democratic control over the future European army.
After failed attempts at creating defense (European Defense Community) and political
communities (European Political Community). They focused on economic unity, leading
to the Treaties of Rome being signed in 1957 which established the European Economic
Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) among the
members

The European Union

19731993:

Enlargement Policy
1960s French rejection to UK membership.
Three Communities merging into ->
European Communities (1967)
De Gaulle's veto delayed the first
enlargement

1973: Three new members United

Kingdom, Denmark and Ireland.
First of several enlargements.

Throughout the 1960s tensions began to show with France seeking to limit supranational
power and rejecting the membership of the United Kingdom.
However, in 1965 an agreement was reached to merge the three communities under a
single set of institutions, and hence the Merger Treaty was signed in Brussels and came
into force on 1 July 1967 creating the European Communities.
After much negotiation, and following a change in the French Presidency, Denmark,
Ireland and the United Kingdom (with Gibraltar) eventually joined the European
Communities on 1 January 1973. This was the first of several enlargements which
become a major policy area of the Union.
In 1979, the European Parliament held its first direct elections by universal suffrage.

The European Union

1973

Denmark
Ireland
United Kingdom

The European Union

1981

Greece

In 1985, Greenland voted to leave the Community.

The European Union

1986

Portugal
Spain

European Flag was

adopted in 1986

the adoption of the European flag by the Communities

The European Union

November
1989
Fall of the
Berlin Wall
sets the
stage for
unifying
Europe and
EU
enlargement

In 1989, following upheavals in Eastern Europe, the Berlin Wall fell, along with the Iron
curtain. Germany reunified and the door to enlargement to the former eastern bloc was
opened

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The European Union

1993-2004:

European Union
Maastricht Treaty (Treaty of the European
Union).
1995: Three new members Austria,
Sweden and Finland.
The signing of the Maastricht Treaty
which created the EU legally

1990s EURO development. 1 January 2002

notes and coins were put into circulation.

The Maastricht Treaty (Treaty on the European Union) became effective, creating the
European Union
Negotiations concluded with Austria, Sweden, Finland and Norway. Each country held a
referendum on membership which resulted in a majority in all but Norway, which hence
stayed out of the EU. However, Norway did participate with Iceland and Liechtenstein in
the European Economic Association (entered into force on 1 January 1994), which
allowed European Free Trade Association states to enter the Single European Market
The 1990s also saw the further development of the euro.
First step where 11 members (the 15, minus Sweden, Denmark, Greece and the United
Kingdom) would adopt the euro in 1999. 2000 saw the Commission recommending
Greece joining the eurozone, which it did at the start of 2001. However, both Denmark
and Sweden rejected the currency in referendums. On 1 January 2002, the physical euro
currency came into circulation in the 12 eurozone states

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The European Union

1995

Austria
Finland
Sweden

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The European Union

2004

Biggest Enlargement
Latvian European car plate

Nice Treaty. Draft of European Constitution.

Ten new members.

The Nice Treaty was signed on 26 February 2001 and came into force on 1 February
2003 while the European Convention began drafting the European Constitution. The Nice
Treaty made the final preparations before the 2004 enlargement to 10 new members.
Finally, on 1 May 2004, the Union expanded from 15 to 25 members, the largest single
expansion in its history. Its population jumped from 381 million to 456 million

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The European Union

2004

Cyprus
Czech Republic
Estonia
Hungary
Latvia
Lithuania
Malta
Poland
Slovakia
Slovenia

Picture of the Europe Union of 25 State Members

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The European Union

2007

Latest Enlargement
Two new members Romania and Bulgaria.
Existing Candidates.
Turkey formally apply to join the
European Community in 1987

In 2007, the fifth enlargement completed with the accession of Romania and Bulgaria on
1 January.
In 1987 Turkey formally applied to join the Community and began the longest application
process for any country

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The European Union

2007

Bulgaria
Romania

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The European Union

Candidate Countries
Croatia
Former Yugoslav
Republic of Macedonia
Turkey
Potential
Candidate Countries
Albania
Bosnia & Herzegovina
Montenegro
Serbia including Kosovo
under UN Security Council
Resolution 1244

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The European Union

More than 50 Years of Integration

27

Member States

Combined
population of
EU Member
States

Europe has enjoyed the longest period of

peace in its history
Enlargement has:

490
million

- Inspired reforms and consolidated common

principles.
- Enhanced the EUs weight in the world.

Percent of worlds
population

1957
Member States

Percent of
global GDP

55

30

Population

2007

27

174 million

493 million

Percent of combined
worldwide Official
Development Assistance

Some Figures of the European Union Nowadays:

27 member states -> Population 490 million people (7% of worlds population) with 30 %
of world Gross Domestic Product.

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The European Union

United in Diversity - The uro

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The European Union

The uro

1999: the EURO was established as a currency in

eleven Member States.

2002: Physical notes and coins were introduced in

twelve Member States.

2007-2009: Four new members adopt EURO.

Eurozone: 16 State Members

Finally Greece joined in 2002.

1st January 2007, Slovenia adopted the euro, after other candidates such as Lithuania
were turned down due to inflation. Malta and Cyprus adopted the euro on 1 January
2008. Slovakia became the Eurozone's sixteenth member the 1 January 2009.

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The European Union

The term "eurozone" or "euro area" can also be taken informally to include third countries
that have adopted the euro, for example Montenegro .Three European microstates
Monaco, San Marino and the Vatican have concluded agreements with the European
Union permitting them to use the euro as their official currency and mint coins, but they
are neither formally part of the eurozone nor represented on the board of the European
Central Bank. Several other countries have officially adopted the euro as their sole
currency, such as Andorra, Kosovo[a] and Montenegro, without even an agreement.
These states are also not considered part of the official eurozone
Denmark and the United Kingdom obtained special opt-outs in the original Maastricht
Treaty of the European Union. Both countries are legally exempt from joining the
eurozone unless their governments decide otherwise. The current Danish government
has announced plans to hold a referendum on the issue following the adoption of the
Treaty of Lisbon.
The remaining currencies are expected to follow as soon as they meet the criteria.
Sweden gained a de facto opt-out by exploiting a legal loophole. It does not work to meet
the criteria to join, deliberately staying out of ERM II, and so is not able to adopt the
currency as it is obliged to. This is because the Swedish public rejected the euro in a
referendum. The Commission tolerates this, but has stated that it would not be lenient on
any future members attempting this action.

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The European Union

A BRIEF PRESENTATION OF

THE EUROPEAN UNION

More than 50 Years of Peace, Prosperity and Partnership

THANK U!
QUESTIONS?!?!?

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