Treaties of the European Union

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Treaties of the European Union

The Treaties of the European Union are a set of international treaties

Treaty

A Treaty is an agreement under international law entered into by actors in international law, namely states and international organizations. A Treaty may also be known as: agreement, protocol, covenant, convention, exchange of letters, etc....
between the Union's member states

Member State of the European Union

A Member State of the European Union is any one of the 27 sovereign nation states that have acceded to the European Union since its de facto inception in 1951 as the European Coal and Steel Community ....
which sets out the constitutional basis

Constitution

A constitution is a system for government — often codified as a written document — that establishes the rules and principles of an autonomous political entity....
of the European Union

European Union

The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 European Union member state, located primarily in Europe. It was established by the Treaty of Maastricht on 1 November 1993 upon the foundations of the pre-existing European Economic Community....
(EU). They establish the various EU institutions

Institutions of the European Union

There are currently five institutions of the European Union which govern the Union. They are outlined in the treaties of the European Union in the following order: the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union ; the European Commission, the European Court of Justice and the European Court of Auditors....
, their procedures and the EU's objectives.

The Treaty establishing the European Community (Rome Treaty, effective since 1958) and the Treaty on European Union

Maastricht Treaty

The Maastricht Treaty was signed on 7 February 1992 in Maastricht, the Netherlands after final negotiations on December 9, 1991 between the members of the European Community and entered into force on 1 November 1993 during the Delors Commission....
(Maastricht Treaty, effective since 1993) combined constitute the EU's legal basis. These are known as the founding treaties.

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Encyclopedia

The Treaties of the European Union are a set of international treaties

Treaty

Member State of the European Union

Constitution

A constitution is a system for government — often codified as a written document — that establishes the rules and principles of an autonomous political entity....
of the European Union

European Union

Institutions of the European Union

Maastricht Treaty

Enlargement of the European Union

Enlargement of the European Union is the process of expanding the European Union through the accession of new Member State of the European Union....
to the EU, an accession treaty altering the list of signatories within the founding treaties is required to enter force. Accession treaties can also alter other parts of the founding treaties. There is also a number of amending treaties with the sole purpose of reform.

Ratified treaties

Legend for below table: [Founding] - [Amending] - [Membership]

Treaty	Established/Amended	Signed in	Ceased
ECSC Treaty Treaty of Paris (1951) The Treaty of Paris, signed on 18 April, 1951 between France, West Germany, Italy and the three Benelux countries established the European Coal and Steel Community , which subsequently became part of the European Union....	European Coal and Steel Community European Coal and Steel Community The European Coal and Steel Community was a six-nation international organisation serving to unify Western Europe during the Cold War and creating the foundation for European democracy and the modern-day developments of the European Union....	Paris, FR France France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
Euratom Treaty Treaty of Rome The Treaties of Rome are two of the treaties of the European Union signed on March 25 1957. Both treaties were signed by Inner Six: Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany....	European Atomic Energy Community European Atomic Energy Community The European Atomic Energy Community is an international organization which is semi-independent of, but completely controlled by, the European Community Three pillars of the European Union of the European Union....	Rome, IT Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....	in force
EEC Treaty Treaty of Rome The Treaties of Rome are two of the treaties of the European Union signed on March 25 1957. Both treaties were signed by Inner Six: Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany....	European Economic Community European Economic Community The European Economic Community was an international organisation created in 1957 to bring about economic integration between Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands....	Rome, IT Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....	in force
Merger Treaty Merger Treaty The Merger Treaty was a Treaties of the European Union which combined the Executive bodies of the European Coal and Steel Community , European Atomic Energy Community and the European Economic Community into a single Institutions of the European Union....		Brussels Brussels Brussels , officially the Brussels Capital-Region, is the de facto capital city of the European Union and the largest urban area in Belgium.... , BE Belgium * A small German-speaking Community of Belgium exists in eastern Wallonia. Belgium's linguistic diversity and related political and cultural conflicts are reflected in the history of Belgium and a complex Communities and regions of Belgium....
First Budgetary Treaty Budgetary treaties of the European Communities The Budgetary treaties of the European Communities were two treaties in the 1970s amending the Treaty of Rome in respects to powers over the Budget of the European Union....		Luxembourg Luxembourg (city) The city of Luxembourg , also known as Luxembourg City , is a Communes of Luxembourg with List of cities in Luxembourg, and the Capital of the Luxembourg.... , LU Luxembourg Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a small landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany....	in force
Acts of Accession		Brussels Brussels Brussels , officially the Brussels Capital-Region, is the de facto capital city of the European Union and the largest urban area in Belgium.... , BE Belgium * A small German-speaking Community of Belgium exists in eastern Wallonia. Belgium's linguistic diversity and related political and cultural conflicts are reflected in the history of Belgium and a complex Communities and regions of Belgium....	in force
Second Budgetary Treaty Budgetary treaties of the European Communities The Budgetary treaties of the European Communities were two treaties in the 1970s amending the Treaty of Rome in respects to powers over the Budget of the European Union....		Brussels Brussels Brussels , officially the Brussels Capital-Region, is the de facto capital city of the European Union and the largest urban area in Belgium.... , BE Belgium * A small German-speaking Community of Belgium exists in eastern Wallonia. Belgium's linguistic diversity and related political and cultural conflicts are reflected in the history of Belgium and a complex Communities and regions of Belgium....	in force
Act of Accession	Enlarged to Greece	Athens Athens Athens , the Capital and largest city of Greece, dominates the Attica periphery; as one of the List of cities by time of continuous habitation, its recorded history spans around 3,400 years.... , GR Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , is a country in southeastern Europe, situated on the southern end of the Balkans. It has borders with Albania, Bulgaria and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to the north, and Turkey to the east....	in force
Greenland Treaty	Secession of Greenland Greenland Greenland is a member country of the Kingdom of Denmark located between the Arctic Ocean and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago....	Brussels Brussels Brussels , officially the Brussels Capital-Region, is the de facto capital city of the European Union and the largest urban area in Belgium.... , BE Belgium * A small German-speaking Community of Belgium exists in eastern Wallonia. Belgium's linguistic diversity and related political and cultural conflicts are reflected in the history of Belgium and a complex Communities and regions of Belgium....	in force
Acts of Accession	Enlarged to Spain and Portugal	Madrid Madrid Madrid is the Capital and largest city of Spain. It is the Largest cities of the European Union by population within city limits in the European Union after Greater London and Berlin, and its Madrid metropolitan area is the Largest urban areas of the European Union in the European Union after Paris aire urbaine, Greater London Urban Area, a... , ES Spain Spain or the Kingdom of Spain , is a country located in Southern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula.The Spanish constitution does not establish any official denomination of the country, even though Espa?a , Estado espa?ol and Naci?n espa?ola are used interchangeably.... Lisbon Lisbon Lisbon is the Capital and largest city of Portugal. It is also the seat of the Lisbon and capital of the Lisbon region. Its municipalities of Portugal, which matches the city proper excluding the larger continuous conurbation, has a municipal population of 564,477 in , while the Lisbon Metropolitan Area in total has around 2.8 million inha... , PT Portugal Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country on the Iberian Peninsula. Located in southwestern Europe, Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east....	in force
Single European Act Single European Act The Single European Act was the first major revision of the 1957 Treaty of Rome. The Act set the European Community an objective of establishing a Single Market by 31 December 1992, and codified European Political Cooperation, the forerunner of the European Union's Common Foreign and Security Policy....		Luxembourg Luxembourg (city) The city of Luxembourg , also known as Luxembourg City , is a Communes of Luxembourg with List of cities in Luxembourg, and the Capital of the Luxembourg.... , LU Luxembourg Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a small landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany.... The Hague The Hague The Hague is the third largest city in the Netherlands after Amsterdam and Rotterdam, with a population of 475,904 and an area of approximately 100 km?.... , NL Netherlands The Netherlands is a country that is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands is located in North-West Europe, and bordered by the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east....	in force
Treaty on European Union Maastricht Treaty The Maastricht Treaty was signed on 7 February 1992 in Maastricht, the Netherlands after final negotiations on December 9, 1991 between the members of the European Community and entered into force on 1 November 1993 during the Delors Commission....	European Union European Union The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 European Union member state, located primarily in Europe. It was established by the Treaty of Maastricht on 1 November 1993 upon the foundations of the pre-existing European Economic Community....	Maastricht Maastricht Maastricht is a city and a municipality in the Netherlands province of Limburg , of which it is the Capital . The city is situated on both sides of the Meuse River river in the south-eastern part of the Netherlands, near the Belgium and Germany borders.... , NL Netherlands The Netherlands is a country that is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands is located in North-West Europe, and bordered by the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east....	in force
Acts of Accession		Corfu Corfu Corfu is a Greece list of islands of Greece in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands, and lies off the coast of Sarand?, Albania, from which it is separated by straits varying in breadth from 3 to 23 km , including one near ancient Butrint and a longer one west of Thesprotia.... , GR Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , is a country in southeastern Europe, situated on the southern end of the Balkans. It has borders with Albania, Bulgaria and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to the north, and Turkey to the east....	in force
Treaty of Amsterdam		Amsterdam Amsterdam Amsterdam is the Capital of the Netherlands and List of cities in the Netherlands with over 100,000 people of the Netherlands, located in the Provinces of the Netherlands of North Holland in the west of the country.... , NL Netherlands The Netherlands is a country that is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands is located in North-West Europe, and bordered by the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east....	in force
Treaty of Nice Treaty of Nice The Nice Treaty was signed by European leaders on 26 February, 2001 and came into force on 1 February 2003. It amended the Maastricht Treaty and the Treaty of Rome ....		Nice Nice Nice is a city in Southern France France located on the Mediterranean Sea coast, between Marseille, France, and Genoa, Italy, with 1,197,751 inhabitants in the 2007 estimate.... , FR France France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....	in force
Treaty of Accession 2003 Treaty of Accession 2003 The Treaty of Accession 2003 was the agreement between the European Union and ten countries , concerning these countries accession into the EU ....		Athens Athens Athens , the Capital and largest city of Greece, dominates the Attica periphery; as one of the List of cities by time of continuous habitation, its recorded history spans around 3,400 years.... , GR Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , is a country in southeastern Europe, situated on the southern end of the Balkans. It has borders with Albania, Bulgaria and the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia to the north, and Turkey to the east....	in force
Treaty of Accession 2005 Treaty of Accession 2005 The Treaty of Accession 2005 is an agreement between the member states of European Union and Bulgaria and Romania. It entered into force on 1 January 2007....	Enlarged to Bulgaria Bulgaria The state of Bulgaria , Scientific transliteration Balgarija, officially the Republic of Bulgaria has played a significant role in the Balkans in south-eastern Europe for over fourteen centuries.... and Romania Romania Romania is a country located in Southeastern Europe Central Europe, North of the Balkan Peninsula, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian Mountains, bordering on the Black Sea....	Luxembourg Luxembourg (city) The city of Luxembourg , also known as Luxembourg City , is a Communes of Luxembourg with List of cities in Luxembourg, and the Capital of the Luxembourg.... , LU Luxembourg Luxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a small landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany....	in force

Unratified treaties

Treaty instituting a European Defence Community

European Defence Community

The European Defense Community was a plan proposed in 1950 by Ren? Pleven, the French President of the Council , in response to the United States call for the rearmament of West Germany....
. Following on from the success of the Treaty of Paris, efforts were made to allow West Germany to rearm within the framework of a European military structure

Military of the European Union

At present, there is no military of the European Union, as the European integration has not developed very far in the area of defence. There have however been a number of defence initiatives, peacekeeping operations and organisations established in the context of the European Union ....
in the form of a European Defence Community. The treaty was signed by the the six members

Inner Six

The Inner Six, or simply The Six, were the six founding Member State of the European Union of the European Communities. This was in contrast to the outer seven who formed the European Free Trade Association rather than be involved in supranational European integration ....
on 27 May 1952 and the Common Assembly

European Parliament

The European Parliament is the only direct election parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union , it forms the bicameral Institutions of the European Union#Legislature of the Institutions of the European Union and has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world....
began drafting a treaty for a European Political Community

European Political Community

The European Political Community was proposed in 1952 as a combination of the existing European Coal and Steel Community and the proposed European Defence Community ....
to ensure democratic accountability of the new army, but this treaty was abandoned when the Defence Community treaty was rejected by the French National Assembly

French National Assembly

The France National Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of France under the French Fifth Republic. The other is the French Senate ....
on 30 August 1954.

1973 and 1995 Acts of Accession of Norway Norway has tried to join the European Communities/Union on two occasions, on both occasions a national referendum returned a negative result leading Norway to turn down membership. The first treaty was signed in Brussels

Brussels

Brussels , officially the Brussels Capital-Region, is the de facto capital city of the European Union and the largest urban area in Belgium....
on 22 January 1972 and the second in Corfu

Corfu

Corfu is a Greece list of islands of Greece in the Ionian Sea. It is the second largest of the Ionian Islands, and lies off the coast of Sarand?, Albania, from which it is separated by straits varying in breadth from 3 to 23 km , including one near ancient Butrint and a longer one west of Thesprotia....
on 24 June 1994.

Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe

Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe

The Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe , commonly referred to as the European Constitution, was an international treaty intended to create a constitution for the European Union....
(the European Constitution) The European Constitution was a treaty that would have repealed and consolidated all previous overlapping treaties (except the Euratom treaty) into a single document. It also made changes to voting systems, simplified the structure of the EU and advanced co-operation in foreign policy. The treaty was signed in Rome on 29 October 2004 and was due to come into force on 1 November 2006 if it was ratified by all member states. However, this did not occur, with France rejecting the document in a national referendum on 29 May 2005 and then the Netherlands in their own referendum on 1 June 2005. Following a "period of reflection", the constitution in that form was scrapped and replaced by the Treaty of Lisbon

Treaty of Lisbon

The Treaty of Lisbon of 1668 was a peace treaty between Portugal and Spain, concluded at Lisbon, February 13, 1668, by the mediation of England, in which Spain recognized Portuguese independence....
(ongoing ratification) The Lisbon Treaty was agreed on 19 October 2007 and carried over most of the amendments made by the Constitution in the form of an amending treaty. It was signed on 13 December 2007 in Lisbon

Lisbon

Lisbon is the Capital and largest city of Portugal. It is also the seat of the Lisbon and capital of the Lisbon region. Its municipalities of Portugal, which matches the city proper excluding the larger continuous conurbation, has a municipal population of 564,477 in , while the Lisbon Metropolitan Area in total has around 2.8 million inha...
with the aim of it being ratified in time for it to come into force in 2009. On this occasion, Ireland

Republic of Ireland

Ireland is an Island country in north-western Europe. The modern Sovereignty state occupies about five-sixths of the island of Ireland, which was partitioned by the British on 3 May 1921....
was the only state to hold a referendum

Twenty-eighth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland Bill, 2008

The Twenty-eighth Amendment of the Constitution Bill, 2008 was a bill to amend the Constitution of Ireland in order to enable ratification of the Treaty of Lisbon of the European Union, so it could be enacted as scheduled on 1 January 2009....
which resulted in a 53% vote against. Due to this rejection, the future of the treaty is uncertain.

External links

- Europa

Europa (web portal)

Europa , the official web portal of the European Union, is intended to improve the public?s interaction with EU institutions by quickly directing website visitors to the services or information they are seeking....

Treaties of the European Union

Ratified treaties

Unratified treaties

See also

External links