The Union of European States is built on a visa-free regime, has a single economic space and currency. With sovereignty, all countries live in accordance with the developed general rules that apply to all walks of life, whether it be international politics, education, medicine or social services.
History of the organization
For the first time, the idea of integrating European states was voiced at a conference in Paris, which took place in 1867. However, it was not implemented. The disagreements between the participants were so significant that before joining the European Union they had to endure two world wars.
The trend towards unification emerged shortly after the end of World War II, when the leading countries agreed that the regeneration and development of economies are real only with close joint cooperation. The idea of the fifty-year path of the countries of Europe towards unification is most traceable in the sequence of all events.
Chronology
Initiallyjoining the union meant the integration of the coal mining and steel industries of two large countries - England and France. This was mentioned in 1950 by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the latter. In those days, no one expected such a significant expansion of the organization.
The European Union was created in 1957. It includes countries with developed economies. The organization included the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Germany, France, Italy, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg and Belgium. Since March 1957, states such as Finland, Austria and Sweden have joined the union.
In the spring of 2003, at the EU summit in Greece, an agreement was signed on admitting 10 more countries to the ranks. As a result, Slovenia integrated in 2007, followed a year later by Cyprus and M alta. Slovakia joined in 2009 and Estonia in 2001. Since the beginning of 2014, Latvia has been announced as the 18th member of the European Union. Also joined the Czech Republic, Poland, Lithuania, Hungary.
Some member countries of the European Union have introduced into the composition and territories under political subordination. For example, along with France, Reunion, Saint Martin, Martinique, Guadeloupe, Mayotte and French Guiana entered. Spain attracted the Canary Islands and the provinces of Melilla and Ceuta. In parallel with Portugal, Madeira and the Azores entered. Despite this significant expansion, Greenland left the EU in 1985.
So how many EU members are there? Croatia was the last country to join cooperation within the EU. This happened in 2013. She became the 28th participant. To date, the unionincreases and does not decrease.
Criteria for joining the association
Not all countries comply with EU requirements. The content of the main rules is set out in a special document. By 1993, the experience of coexistence of states was accumulated and on this basis general criteria were taken into account when joining the association of a new country.
The norms were adopted in Copenhagen and received the appropriate name - Copenhagen. The core of the rules are democratic values. The main attention is paid to freedom and respect for the rights of every citizen. A big role is given to the fact that potential members of the European Union have the right to compete with their economies. The general principles of building a state should be based on the objectives of the standards of the Union.
How are decisions made?
Before any major policy step is taken, all EU members must bring the issue to the fore.
It will be approved in accordance with the Copenhagen criteria. The final decision may have a significant impact on the public life of the country.
Each country in Europe that wants to add to the list of countries is checked for compliance with particular scrupulousness. As a result, a verdict is issued on the readiness or unreadiness of accepting a new country into the union. In case of refusal, the state is pointed out to its failure in one or another area. Deficiencies should be brought to the norm. After that, the country is subjected toregular monitoring of how systematically the necessary reforms are being carried out. Based on the received data, a conclusion is made about the readiness for integration.
A single currency
EU member states, in addition to the general political vector and visa-free space, use a single currency - the euro. Banknotes have been introduced since 2002 in countries such as Belgium, Germany, Greece, Spain, France, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Austria and Finland.
By 2016, 19 out of 28 countries adopted the euro on their territory. Other EU members are preparing the transition to this currency. The exceptions are England and Denmark. These countries have a special waiver. Sweden has also expressed opposition to using the euro, but may change its mind in the near future.
Candidates to join
Most European countries are striving for full EU membership. Associate candidates for 2016 are - Serbia, Turkey, Montenegro, Macedonia and Albania. Bosnia and Herzegovina is listed as a potential contender.
In different years, the accession agreement was signed by some other countries. They also include states located outside Europe, which indicates that the EU goes beyond the Eurasian continent. Emerging economies are also candidates for membership.
Ukraine and Moldova also expressed their desire to join. This happened in 2014. How will the integration of countries with developing countries affect Europe?economy, while it is difficult to judge.
What does the accession agreement imply?
The accession agreement implies the mandatory implementation of major reforms in the associative states, the improvement of the legislative framework in accordance with European standards.
In exchange, countries can receive duty-free presence in the European market, financial and technical assistance.
To date, associate members of the European Union - 17 countries. Not all of them are in Europe. Even Palestine is listed among the contenders.
During the entire existence of the EU, many association agreements have been signed, just many European countries have left the association and become full members of the EU (Poland, Romania, Bulgaria).
In 20 years, the Russian Federation may join the ranks of the EU
Russia is a member of the European Union… Is it real?
The opinion on this issue was expressed by the President of the Czech Republic Milos Zeman. According to him, the economies of Russia and Europe complement each other. The first needs improved technologies, and the second needs energy resources. At the same time, the Czech leader expressed confidence that freedom of speech, transparency of elections are respected in our country, there is no oppression of opposition parties and there is self-government in the regions.
The role of the UK in the EU
Great Britain is a member of the European Union, but after the victory in the 2015 elections, John Cameron proposed the idea of England leaving the organization. The EU was in crisis. This proposal was not implementedwas, and the collapse of the organization was prevented.
At the Brussels summit in 2016, an agreement was signed to give the UK a special status.
EU members made this state significant concessions:
- For 7 years - from 2017 to 2023 - the British government will not pay social benefits, first in full, and then partially to labor migrants from other European countries.
- England and other EU countries get the right to index benefits for children of migrants who remain in their country. The payments will be based not on the standard of living in the Kingdom, but on the social conditions of the country where the child lives. This provision is valid until January 1, 2020.
- British people will no longer be asked for political unification.
- England got the right to protect its commercial segment of the City. British firms will not be discriminated against for not being part of the eurozone.
- The Kingdom's national security issues will remain in the purview of the government.
- England's troops will not be part of a pan-European army if one is created.
According to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, innovations in the payment of child benefits are also beneficial for her country. She is unanimous with Cameron about cuts in social benefits.
Is it too early to celebrate?
Inspired by his victory, the Prime Minister of Great Britain will begin to agitate the citizens of England about not leaving the EU. However, talking tocertainty that this proposal will win the election is quite difficult.
Cameron is sure of total victory, but there are those who doubt it.
Some skeptics of the agreement were not satisfied. They consider it insignificant. The opposition claims the PM promised more privileges in the Conservative manifesto.
There are enough opponents of the EU in the British government itself. For example, such is the Minister of Justice Michael Gove. He does not hide his negative attitude towards the EU and will agitate the citizens of England to vote against integration.
Even in the Conservative Party itself, of which Cameron is a representative, there is no unanimity on this issue. Therefore, the fight for the UK to leave the EU will continue.
The British will be offered a referendum. It was originally supposed to be held in 2017. But more and more often another date is heard - June 23, 2016, although officially this information is not supported by anything.
Features of EU economic life
Economy of the EU - The sum of the economies of all its constituent countries. Along with this, each state in the international market is a separate player.
The European Union protects the interests of each member and acts as a regulator of all contentious issues. Each country is required to contribute its share of GDP and the total contribution. EU members that contribute the lion's share of income are France, Italy, Germany, England and Spain.
The specific amount of income from each state is calculated by a special body. If we take into account allnatural resources of the EU members, then we can derive the coefficient of the amount of we alth that the organization has in 2016. The main natural resources are oil, coal and gas. The overall indicator of the stock of black gold in terms of production level puts the EU in 13th place in the world.
Another powerful lever of income is the tourism business. The population of the European Union is actively moving, which facilitates the opening of borders. This factor, as well as the common currency, contribute to lively relations in the field of trade and tourism between states.
Thus, the EU, which was originally conceived as a trade association of several countries, has grown by 2016 into an almost independent unit, including 28 members. In total, the population of the association is 500 million people.
The accumulation of economies determines the highly efficient reallocation of funds and resources and helps support states that have weaker economies.
Conclusion
The most important characteristic of the current stage of EU development is the symbiosis of factors that influence the desire of states to integrate. The new members of the European Union consider the material side to be a priority. Many of them also include military cooperation in NATO.
For most of the old members, political and international issues come to the fore. Such a difference in goals inevitably required the development of new criteria and a fundamental reform of the very structure of the union.
