From Europe to Euro

1
From Europe to Euro

• Elisabeth Prugl, Co-Director
• Miami-Florida European Union Center of Excellence

2
What is the EU?

• State?
• International Organization?
• Economic Union

3
Outline of Presentation

• Concepts
• Economic Integration
• Intergovernmentalism vs. Supranationalism
• History
• Widening and Deepening

4
Economic Integration

• Free Trade Area
• Free movement of goods and services
• Customs Union
• Common external tariff
• Common Market
• Free movement of capital and labor
• Economic Union
• Common policies (including monetary policy)

5
Intergovernmentalism Supranationalism

• Integration with strong state control
• Every state should be allowed veto

• Integration with supra-national institutions
• There should be majority voting

6
Decision-making
European Commission
European Parliament
Council of the EU
7
Commission

• Guardian of the Treaty
• Proposes legislation
• Executive
• 27 Commissioners and Bureaucracy in Brussels

8
Parliament

• Directly elected by European citizens (875
  members)
• With the Council, passes legislation

9
Council

• Ministers from member states
• Main decision-making body
• Rotating presidency

10
Court of Justice

• Ensures that European laws are interpreted and
  applied correctly and uniformly

11
History
12
European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC)

• 1951
• Heavy industry (coal and steel) put under
  European management
• Creates institutions

13
Treaties of Rome

• 1957
• European Economic Community (EEC)
• Envisions customs union, common market
• Ever closer union
• European Atomic Energy Community (EURATOM)

14
1960s

• Completion of Customs Union
• Development of Common Agricultural Policy
• Reintroduction of veto (Charles De Gaulle)

15
1970s

• First Enlargement
• 1973
• Denmark, Ireland, United Kingdom
• Eurosclerosis

16
1980s Widening and Deepening

• Mediterranean Enlargement
• 1981 Greece
• 1986 Spain, Portugal
• EU 12
• Single European Act

17
Single European Act

• 1986
• Relance
• 1992 deadline for the completion of the common
  market
• Eliminate physical, technical, fiscal barriers
• Introduces qualified majority voting in the
  Council

18
1989

• Fall of Berlin Wall
• Prospect of unifying all of Europe
• German unification (1990)
• hidden enlargement

19
1990s Deepening and Widening

• Maastricht Treaty (1993)
• Treaty of European Union
• Monetary Union (Euro)
• Political Union (common foreign and security
  policy)
• More power to the parliament
• Difficult process of ratification
• Enlargement Austria, Sweden, Finland join the EU
  in 1995

20
EU 15
21
The Euro

• Convergence Criteria
• 1999 Euro launched as unit of account for 11
  member states
• 2002 Euro notes and coins replace national
  currencies in 12 member states

22
Deepening and Widening the 21st Century

• Enlargements
• Eastern enlargement adds 12 new countries (2004
  and 2007)
• Effort to write constitutional treaty problems
  with ratification
• Treaty of Lisbon 2007
• Change in voting
• Foreign Minister
• Voted down in Ireland

23
EU vs. Euro Area

• Euro area Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Finland,
  France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy,
  Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Portugal,
  Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain.
• EU Member States obliged to adopt the euro
  eventually Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia,
  Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania,
  Sweden.
• EU Member States with an opt out from adopting
  the euro Denmark, United Kingdom.