1. 7 September 2017 by Sigrid Brevik Wangsness
The EU
7 September 2017 by
Sigrid Brevik Wangsness

2. Why the European Union? Origin of the EU
Europe – a divided and unstable continent
The dream of uniting Europe
After the immense sufferings and destructions of two world wars:
- How to build peace in Europe?
- How to create European unity?

3. Origin of the EU
Winston Churchill’s vision (1946): Creation of a “United States of Europe” with reconciliation between France and Germany as the first step.
Founding fathers of the EU: Robert Schuman (France), Konrad Adenauer (Germany) and Alcide De Gasperi (Italy)

4. Parallel Developments
Other organizations promoting European unity were also established in the early post-war years:
The UN
The Organization for European Economic Co-operation (OEEC, later OECD)
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)
The Council of Europe

5. Forerunner of the EU
1951: The European Coal and Steel Community (The Treaty of Paris). France, Germany,
Italy and the
BeNeLux countries.
Britain declined.
Why?

6. 1957: The EEC The European Economic Community The EEC was :
(The Treaty of Rome). Six member states.
The EEC was :
a customs union
a common market (a Common External Tariff)
had common policies on trade, agriculture, transport

7. The EEC
Aimed for coordinated economic / monetary policies ( the ERM = the Exchange Rate Mechanism)
= increased economic integration in Europe
Moreover, even at this early stage it was stated that the ultimate goal was political unity

8. The EEC - EC - EU 1987: Name change to the EC = The European Community
1992:
Name change to the EU =
The European Union

9. Development of the EU 1993: The Single Market
Free movement of goods, persons, services, and capital
1998: A European Central
Bank (ECB)
1999: European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU): A single currency = the euro

10. Development of the EU 2002: Euro coins and notes
: Expansion of the
EU to 27 member states
2007: The EU Reform Treaty (The Lisbon
Treaty = its new constitutional treaty)
: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania
adopted the euro = 19 nations
2013: Croatia =the 28th EU member state

11. The EU Member States The first 6: 3 in the 1970s: 3 in the 1980s:

12. EU Institutions Organizational structure - a federation?
The concept “pooling of sovereignty”.
Seven major institutions with different roles and responsibilities

13. The European Council Role: General policies, guidelines, visions,
priorities. (A separate institution since 2009)
Heads of State, 4 times a year.
The President of the European
Council (sometimes referred to
as the President of the EU) is
Donald Tusk.
A principal representative of the EU on the world stage.

14. The European Commission
How many members does the Commission have?
The President of the
Commission is Jean-Claude
Juncker.
What are the main functions of the Commission?
How important is the Commission within the EU?

15. The European Parliament
How many MEPs are there today?
The President of the EP is
Antonio Tajani.
What are the three main
roles of the EP?
How influential is the European Parliament?

16. The Council of the EU Who are the members of the Council?
Explain the system of “the rotating EU presidency”.
What is the “Trio Presidency”?
What are the major tasks
of the Council?
The High Representative:
Federica Mogherini

17. The European Central Bank
The current President of the ECB is Mario Draghi, former governor
of the Bank of Italy
The ECB is headquartered in Frankfurt, Germany

18. The European Court of Justice
What are the two major tasks of the Court?
The European Court of Auditors
Why is this an important institution for the EU?

19. Comparison of the EU Institutions
Explain the separation of power between
the European Parliament
the Council of the EU
the European Commission
The European Court of Justice
Explain the concept of “co-decision”
How do the Commission and the Council differ?

20. The State of the Union
10 years since the start of the global financial crisis
The major causes for the crisis in the EU
In 2009: 18 EU countries were experiencing systemic crises
In 2017: «Europe’s economic recovery is accelerating»

21. Discussion: The Future of the EU?
What are the main challenges and dilemmas of the EU today?
What are your views regarding the euro and the euro zone?
What are your views regarding the future of the EU?