The UN is a world organization, but it does little to deal with economics. Trade and economic cooperation between countries is very powerful. European Union (EU) Trade agreements and coalitions already exist in various places all over the world.

You may have heard of NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement). The United States, Mexico, and Canada are members of that group. That means that those countries exercise free trade between each other. It is not totally free trade though. The tariffs between the countries are reduced or eliminated depending upon the product. Alex Covarrubias. Creative Commons 2.5, October 2007.Heraldry. Creative Commons 3.0, 2009.

Today, the European Union is the most powerful and strongest economic cooperative in the world. Watch the map to the right as it grows over time. European Union

The EU has a court system, a parliament, a budget, collective foreign policy and even specific leaders of the legislative and executive branches. They have made laws including protection of the environment, they provide humanitarian aid and provide loans when needed. However, the most powerful aspect of the EU is the ability of all of the member countries to work together economically. Acting together, the members of the EU have the most powerful economy in the world. This is not something they could achieve separately. Yet despite this power, many members of the EU still maintain some economic independence. England, for example, does not use the EU’s money system, known as the EURO. THE POWER OF THE EUROPEAN UNION

The borders between European countries are often unprotected and unguarded. The EU has even developed its own military technology to share with member countries. Together, the EU boasts a powerful GDP. The EU donates more food and supplies than any other economic cooperative in the world. Rock Cohen, Creative Commons 3.0, July 2007.

If it benefits countries to work together, why do we see so much fighting between countries in the world?