European Union

"EU" redirects here. For other uses, see EU (disambiguation).

European Union
(in other official languages)
Bulgarian Европейски съюз
Czech Evropská unie
Danish Den Europæiske Union
German Europäische Union
Greek Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση
Spanish Unión Europea
Estonian Euroopa Liit
Finnish Euroopan unioni
French Union européenne
Irish An tAontas Eorpach
Croatian Europska unija
Hungarian Európai Unió
Italian Unione europea
Lithuanian Europos Sąjunga
Latvian Eiropas Savienība
Maltese Unjoni Ewropea
Dutch Europese Unie
Polish Unia Europejska
Portuguese União Europeia
Romanian Uniunea Europeană
Slovak Európska únia
Slovene Evropska unija
Swedish Europeiska unionen
Circle of 12 gold stars on a blue background
Motto: "In Varietate Concordia" (Latin)
"United in Diversity"
Anthem: "Anthem of Europe"
Location of the European Union (dark green)

in Europe (dark grey)

CapitalBrussels (de facto)[1]
Institutional seats
Brussels
  • Parliament
Largest metropolisParis
Official languages24 languages
Official scripts
Religion
(2015)[2]
Demonym(s)European
TypeContinental union
Confederation (de facto)
Membership
GovernmentMixed supranational and intergovernmental directorial parliamentary confederation
Charles Michel
Ursula von der Leyen
 Hungary[3]
Roberta Metsola
LegislatureThe European Parliament and the Council
• Upper house
Council of the European Union
• Lower house
European Parliament
Formation[4]
18 April 1951
1 January 1958
1 July 1987
1 November 1993
1 December 2009
Area
• Total
4,225,104 km2 (1,631,322 sq mi)[5]
• Water (%)
2.93
Population
• 2024 estimate
Neutral increase 449,206,579[6]
• Density
106.3/km2 (275.3/sq mi)
GDP (PPP)2024 estimate
• Total
Increase $28.044 trillion[7]
• Per capita
Increase $62,660[7]
GDP (nominal)2024 estimate
• Total
Increase $19.403 trillion[7]
• Per capita
Increase $43,194
Gini (2023)Steady 29.6[8]
low inequality
CurrencyEuro (€) (EUR)
Others
Time zoneUTC to UTC+2 (WET, CET, EET)
• Summer (DST)
UTC+1 to UTC+3 (WEST, CEST, EEST)
(see also Summer time in Europe)[a]
Internet TLD.eu, .ευ, .ею[b]
Website
europa.eu

The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of 27 member states that are located primarily in Europe.[9][10] The Union has a total area of 4,233,255 km2 (1,634,469 sq mi) and an estimated total population of over 449 million. The EU has often been described as a sui generis political entity combining the characteristics of both a federation and a confederation.[11][12]

Containing 5.8% of the world population in 2020,[c] EU member states generated a nominal gross domestic product (GDP) of around US$16.6 trillion in 2022, constituting approximately one sixth of global nominal GDP.[14] Additionally, all EU states except Bulgaria have a very high Human Development Index according to the United Nations Development Programme. Its cornerstone, the Customs Union, paved the way to establishing an internal single market based on standardised legal framework and legislation that applies in all member states in those matters, and only those matters, where the states have agreed to act as one. EU policies aim to ensure the free movement of people, goods, services and capital within the internal market;[15] enact legislation in justice and home affairs; and maintain common policies on trade,[16] agriculture,[17] fisheries and regional development.[18] Passport controls have been abolished for travel within the Schengen Area.[19] The eurozone is a group composed of the 20 EU member states that have fully implemented the economic and monetary union and use the euro currency. Through the Common Foreign and Security Policy, the union has developed a role in external relations and defence. It maintains permanent diplomatic missions throughout the world and represents itself at the United Nations, the World Trade Organization, the G7 and the G20. Due to its global influence, the European Union has been described by some scholars as an emerging superpower.[20][21][22]

The EU was established, along with its citizenship, when the Maastricht Treaty came into force in 1993, and was incorporated as an international legal juridical person[clarification needed] upon entry into force of the Treaty of Lisbon in 2009.[23] Its beginnings can be traced to the Inner Six states (Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and West Germany) at the start of modern European integration in 1948, and to the Western Union, the International Authority for the Ruhr, the European Coal and Steel Community, the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Community, which were established by treaties. These increasingly amalgamated bodies grew, with their legal successor the EU, both in size through the accessions of a further 22 states from 1973 to 2013, and in power through acquisitions of policy areas.

In 2012, the EU was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.[24] The United Kingdom became the only member state to leave the EU, in 2020;[25] ten countries are aspiring or negotiating to join it.

  1. ^ Cybriwsky, Roman Adrian (2013). Capital Cities around the World: An Encyclopedia of Geography, History, and Culture. ABC-CLIO. p. 64. ISBN 978-1-61069-248-9. Brussels, the capital of Belgium, is considered to be the de facto capital of the EU
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference EB2015 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ "Council of the European Union". Council of the EU. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
  4. ^ Current Article 1 of the Treaty on European Union reads: "The Union shall be founded on the present Treaty and on the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union. Those two Treaties shall have the same legal value. The Union shall replace and succeed the European Community".
  5. ^ "Area by NUTS 3 region". ec.europa.eu/eurostat. Eurostat. Retrieved 11 October 2024.
  6. ^ "Population on 1 January". ec.europa.eu. Eurostat. Retrieved 11 July 2024.
  7. ^ a b c "Report for Selected Countries and Subjects: October 2024". imf.org. International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 31 October 2024.
  8. ^ "Gini coefficient of equivalised disposable income by age". ec.europa.eu/eurostat. Eurostat. Retrieved 9 October 2024.
  9. ^ "Glossary of Statistical Terms – COPENHAGEN CRITERIA". Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. 11 June 2013. Retrieved 3 April 2021.
  10. ^ "The EU in brief". European Union. 16 June 2016.
  11. ^ Phelan, William (2012). "What Is Sui Generis About the European Union? Costly International Cooperation in a Self-Contained Regime". International Studies Review. 14 (3): 367–385. doi:10.1111/j.1468-2486.2012.01136.x. ISSN 1468-2486.
  12. ^ Hlavac, Marek (2010). "Less than a State, More than an International Organization: The Sui Generis Nature of the European Union" (PDF). Central European Labour Studies Institute. Rochester, N.Y. doi:10.2139/ssrn.1719308. S2CID 153480456.
  13. ^ "European Union reaches 500 Million through Combination of Accessions, Migration and Natural Growth". Vienna Institute of Demography. Retrieved 12 February 2016.
  14. ^ "World Economic Outlook Database, October 2022". International Monetary Fund. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
  15. ^ European Commission. "The EU Single Market: Fewer barriers, more opportunities". Europa web portal. Archived from the original on 1 October 2007. Retrieved 27 September 2007.
    "Activities of the European Union: Internal Market". Europa web portal. Retrieved 29 June 2007.
  16. ^ "Common commercial policy". Europa Glossary. Europa web portal. Archived from the original on 16 January 2009. Retrieved 6 September 2008.
  17. ^ "Agriculture and Fisheries Council". The Council of the European Union. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  18. ^ "Regional Policy Inforegio". Europa web portal. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  19. ^ "Schengen area". Europa web portal. Archived from the original on 10 August 2011. Retrieved 8 September 2010.
  20. ^ McCormick 2007.
  21. ^ Rifkin, Jeremy (2004). The European Dream. Polity Press. ISBN 1-58542-345-9.
  22. ^ Moravcsik, Andrew (2009). "Europe: The quiet superpower". French Politics. 7 (3–4): 403–422. doi:10.1057/fp.2009.29. ISSN 1476-3419. S2CID 143049416.
  23. ^ Craig & De Burca 2011, p. 15.
  24. ^ "EU collects Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo". BBC News. 10 December 2012. Retrieved 3 June 2013.
  25. ^ Rawlinson, Kevin; Topping, Alexandra; Murphy, Simon; Henley, Jon; Murray, Jessica; Freedland, Jonathan; Rawlinson, Kevin (1 February 2020). "Brexit day: end of an era as United Kingdom leaves EU – as it happened". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 8 June 2020.


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