Portal:European Union

Introduction Portal subpages Main page Institutions Competences Structural evolution Member states   Welcome to the European Union Portal! The European Union (EU) is a political and economic union of 27 member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of 4,233,255.3 km2 (1,634,469.0 sq mi) and an estimated total population of about 447 million. An internal single market has been established through a standardised system of laws that apply 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; enact legislation in justice and home affairs; and maintain common policies on trade, agriculture, fisheries and regional development. Passport controls have been abolished for travel within the Schengen Area. A monetary union was established in 1999, coming into full force in 2002, and is composed of 19 member states which use the euro currency. The EU has often been described as a sui generis political entity (without precedent or comparison) with the characteristics of either a federation or confederation. The union and EU citizenship were established when the Maastricht Treaty came into force in 1993. The EU traces its origins to the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) and the European Economic Community (EEC), established, respectively, by the 1951 Treaty of Paris and 1957 Treaty of Rome. The original member states of what came to be known as the European Communities were the Inner Six: Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and West Germany. The communities and their successors have grown in size by the accession of new member states and in power by the addition of policy areas to their remit. The United Kingdom became the first member state to leave the EU on 31 January 2020. Before this, three territories of member states had left the EU or its forerunners. The latest major amendment to the constitutional basis of the EU, the Treaty of Lisbon, came into force in 2009. (Full article...) Selected article Poland /ˈpoʊlənd/ (listen) (Polish: Polska), officially the Republic of Poland (Polish: Rzeczpospolita Polska; Kashubian: Pòlskô Repùblika; Silesian: Polsko Republika), is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north. The total area of Poland is 312,679 square kilometres (120,726 sq mi),making it the 69th largest country in the world and the 9th largest in Europe. Selected picture Photo credit: commons:User:Dschwen Panoramic image of the Morteratsch Glacier in the Bernina Range. Did you know? ...that Romania and Bulgaria became full members of the European Union on January 1, 2007? ...that the European Union's member states combined represent the world's largest economy by GDP, larger than the United States, the People's Republic of China, and Japan, the seventh largest territory in the world by area and the third largest by population after China and India? Selected city Vilnius is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 537,152 as of 2013. It is the capital of the Vilnius city municipality and of the Vilnius district municipality. It is also the county seat of Vilnius County. Vilnius is situated in southeastern Lithuania at the confluence of the Vilnia and Neris Rivers. It is believed that Vilnius, like many other cities, was named after a crossing river, Vilnia. Vilnius is a cosmopolitan city with diverse architecture. There are more than 40 churches in Vilnius. Some historians identify the city with Voruta, a legendary capital of Mindaugas who was crowned in 1253 as King of Lithuania. The city was first mentioned in written sources in 1323, in letters of Grand Duke Gediminas that were sent to German cities and invited German and Jewish community to settle in the capital city. In 1387, the city was granted city rights by Jogaila, one of Gediminas' successors. General images The following are images from various European Union-related articles on Wikipedia. A cartogram depicting the population distribution between old EU-27 member states (including the UK and excluding Croatia). 58% of all citizens of the EU live in the four largest member states: Germany, France, Italy, and Spain. (from Demographics of the European Union) The Schuman Parade in Warsaw has been organised by the Schuman Foundation since 1999 (2008 photograph). (from Symbols of the European Union) Newest state in yellow. (from History of the European Union) Organigram of the political system. The seven organs of the Union are in blue, national / intergovernmental elements in orange. (from Politics of the European Union) The population density of the EU is 117 people per km2. (from Demographics of the European Union) A piece from the original manuscript. (from Symbols of the European Union) Europa regina in Sebastian Münster's "Cosmographia", 1570. (from History of the European Union) Hearing of Josep Borrell, High Representative Vice President (from Politics of the European Union) Signatories of the declaration in dark blue. (from Symbols of the European Union) The ordinary legislative procedure of the European Union (from Politics of the European Union) Political groups of the European Parliament in the Louise Weiss building after the election 2014:   Group of the European People's Party (EPP)   Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats (S&D)   Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe (ALDE)   European Greens–European Free Alliance (Greens/EFA)   European United Left–Nordic Green Left (GUE/NGL)   European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR)   Europe of Freedom and Democracy (EFD)   Non-Inscrits (NI) (from Politics of the European Union) Konrad Adenauer, Walter Hallstein and Antonio Segni, signing the European customs union and Euratom in Rome in 1957 (from History of the European Union) Otto von Habsburg, who played a leading role in the collapse of the Iron Curtain and communism. (from History of the European Union) José Manuel Barroso President of the European Commission (2004-2014) (from History of the European Union) The European Coal and Steel Community's flag. (from Symbols of the European Union) The Euro symbol shown as a sculpture outside the European Central Bank (from Symbols of the European Union) Ursula von der Leyen President of the European Commission (since 1 December 2019) (from History of the European Union) The flag of Europe, emblem of both the Council of Europe and the European Union. (from Symbols of the European Union) After two devastating world wars, the political climate favoured an international unity that could preserve peace in Europe effectively. (Hamburg, after a massive Allied bombing in 1943 in the picture) (from History of the European Union) Boris Johnson Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (from History of the European Union) Coins and banknotes of the Euro, the single-currency introduced from 1999 (from History of the European Union) The fertility rate in the EU was 1.6 in 2014 (Kindergarten in France). 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