Romania and Bulgaria Officially Join European Union
With the new year's arrival, previously communist countries of Bulgaria and Romania have officially become part of the European Union. The European Union now boasts 27 nations and 500 million people. Bulgarian President Georgy Parvanov was quoted as saying "Bulgaria will be a stable, predictable and trustworthy member of the European Union."
(Media-Newswire.com) - With the new year's arrival, previously communist countries of Bulgaria and Romania have officially become part of the European Union. The European Union now boasts 27 nations and 500 million people. Bulgarian President Georgy Parvanov was quoted as saying "Bulgaria will be a stable, predictable and trustworthy member of the European Union."
The European Union ( EU ) is a supranational and intergovernmental union of 25 ( 27 as of January 2007 ) independent, democratic member states. The European Union is the world's largest confederation of independent states, established under that name in 1992 by the Treaty on European Union ( the Maastricht Treaty ). However, many aspects of the Union existed before that date through a series of predecessor relationships, dating back to 1951.
The Union currently has a common single market consisting of a customs union, a single currency managed by the European Central Bank ( so far adopted by 12 of the 25 member states, by 2007 13 of the 27 member states will be using the euro ), a Common Agricultural Policy, a common trade policy, and a Common Fisheries Policy. A Common Foreign and Security Policy was also established as the second of the three pillars of the European Union. The Schengen Agreement abolished passport control for some member states, and customs checks were also abolished at many of the EU's internal borders, creating to some extent a single space of mobility for EU citizens to live, travel, work and invest.
The most important EU institutions include the Council of the European Union, the European Commission, the European Court of Justice, the European Parliament, the European Council, and the European Central Bank. The European Parliament's origins go back to the 1950s and the founding treaties, and since 1979 its members have been elected by the people they represent. Every five years elections are held in which registered EU citizens may vote.
The European Union's activities cover most areas of public policy, from economic policy to foreign affairs, defense, agriculture and trade. However, the extent of its powers differs greatly among areas. In some the EU may resemble a federation ( e.g. on monetary affairs, agricultural, trade and environmental policy, economic and social policy ), in others a confederation ( e.g. on home affairs ), and in yet others an international organization ( e.g. in foreign affairs ).
The European Union is the largest political and economic entity covering the European continent. It also features the world's largest economy with an estimated nominal GDP of 13.4 trillion USD, with the nominal GDP per capita ranging from $91,927 in Luxembourg to about $4,075 in Bulgaria.
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