EU History

Question 1

1949

Answer 1

Council of Europe
(CoE)
- human rights
–> European Convention on Human Rights
(ECHR)
- classic tools of international law

Question 2

1950

Answer 2

Schuman-Plan for joint control over the prodcution of coal and steel

Question 3

1951

Answer 3

ECSC Treaty
Treaty on the European Coal and Steel Community
(FR, DE, IT, BE, NL, LU)
- joint control of coal and steel production & establishment of a common market for these materials (free trade & fair terms of competition)
- goal: safeguarding lasting peace

Question 4

1957

Answer 4

Treaties of Rome:
- European Economic Community: EEC Treaty
(today TFEU and with Treaty of Lisbon TEU)
- European Atomic Energy Community: EAEC Treaty (still in force)
–> Community Law today EU/Union Law

Question 5

1965 (in force 1967)

Answer 5

Merger Treaty
merging of the separate institutions of the three Communities ECS, EEC & EAEC + common budget

Question 6

1965 & 1966

Answer 6

Empty Chair Policy 1966: Council paralysed because France as country holding Council presidency boycotted council meeting
Luxembourg Compromise 1967: consensus approach (negotiation till absence of objection) instead of majority voting to avoid confrontation and strengthen trust

Question 7

1968 & 1969

Answer 7

1968: Customs Union: common custom tariff regime on imports from third countries
1969: 12 year establishment period of the internal market under the EEC Treaty ends

Question 8

1970

Answer 8

Own Resources Agreement
- first budgetary treaty
- first functional upgrade of the European parliament

Question 9

1973

Answer 9

first enlargement

Question 10

1986, in force since 1987

Answer 10

Single European Act
- extension of the EEC’s competences
- improvement of the decision-making capacity of the Council
–> qualified majority voting introduced to some areas
- European Parliament strengthened
–> steps towards parliament as fully-fledged co-legislator

Question 11

1989

Answer 11

Fall of the Berlin Wall
–> European euphoria
–> debate about the finality of Europe

Question 12

1992, in force since 1993

Answer 12

Maastrich Treaty
three-pillar-structure
1st pillar: EEC, ECSC, EAEC –> Union method + supranational character; strengthened European Parliament
2nd pillar and 3th pillar: classic intergovernmental approach
“EU” –> umbrella term for 3 pillars

Question 13

2005

Answer 13

Constitutional Treaty rejected in referenda in FR and NL
–> shows deep controversy surrounding the federal integration path it proposed

Question 14

2007, in force since 2009

Answer 14

Treaty of Lisbon
- incorporates current version of primary law
- replaced three-pillar structure with single legal personality of the EU
–> extended Union method & supranational character to all areas (exception: CFSP - former 2nd pillar carried over into the TEU)

Question 15

Poly-crisis

Answer 15

originally unrelated but mutually reinforcing challenges
- 2010 start of Euro crisis
- 2014-16 “refugee-crisis”: de facto collapse of the EU asylum regime (Dublin Regulation System) and suspension Schengen codex, no consensus regarding distribution of refugees
- 2017/18 launch of Art. 7 TEU procedure against a two MS (PL & HU) for infringement of fundamental EU values & admonitions from other MS
2016 voting for “Brexit”, carried out in 2020
–> revealed inherent weaknesses of the EU but also its strength in finding pragmatic solutions