EUROPE from A to Z - University of Oregon
Europe
A Z from
to
Guide to European integration
Werner Weidenfeld Wolfgang Wessels
Institut f?r Europ?ische Politik
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
EUROPE FROM A TO Z
2 Contents
Foreword
Upheaval in Europe
Guide to Europe Agricultural policy Budgets Committee of the Regions Common foreign and security policy Competition policy Consumer policy Council of the European Union Culture Decision-making procedures Development Economic and monetary union Economic and Social Committee Economic policy Education and youth Energy Enlargment Environment The euro European Commission European Council European Court of Auditors European Court of Justice European Investment Bank European Monetary Institute European Monetary System European Parliament European Union Europol External relations Fisheries policy Health
EUROPE FROM A TO Z
Industry
Information society
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Intergovernmental Conference
Justice and home affairs
Media policy
Mediterranean and Middle East policy
Models of European integration
People's Europe
Regional policy
Research and technology
The single market
Social policy
Transport policy
Treaties
Women's Europe
The ABC of Europe
A chronology of European integration
List of authors
List of abbreviations
EUROPE FROM A TO Z
4 Foreword
The last few years of the 20th century are full of challenges for the European Union: at the top of the agenda is an institutional reform in 1997, followed by the final stages of economic and monetary union, and lastly the planned enlargement of the Union to include the new Central and East European democracies and Cyprus. At the same time many European Union citizens are facing high unemployment and other serious threats. The globalization of the economy seems to call into question the European Community model. Consequently, many people are viewing the future with pessimism and scepticism.
These challenges have given rise to debates in many countries about the purpose and objectives of the European Union in the run-up to the year 2000. The end of the millenium can be seen as the signal for a new beginning, leaving behind what is probably Europe's bloodiest and darkest century, to emerge into a new age, which, following the historic turning point of 1989, seems to hold out the promise of unification rather than division of the continent and peace instead of war. However, peace and prosperity cannot be achieved merely by a change of date, however symbolic, but only if the people themselves play an active part in shaping society and in living together. The European Union has been created with this in view, step by step over the five decades since the Second World War. For the next stages, if not a complete new beginning, the people of Europe are being called upon to mould European integration according to their wishes. Democratic forms have their beginnings in opinion-forming and discussion.
With this book the European Commission, together with independent experts on European affairs, aims to shed light on the tasks, organization and policies of the EU as seen from various viewpoints. The authors were asked to write about their respective areas of specialization in as concise, readable and factual a way as possible, to provide the reader with a reference work offering a quick but accurate overview of the EU. Following the articles in the `Guide to Europe', there is an ABC of Europe containing brief definitions to help with the Community vocabulary. Readers of Europe from A to Z can therefore choose between a short statement of the facts or a more detailed outline. For example, should you wish to know what Socrates stands for, the answer is to be found in the list of abbreviations; the ABC of Europe contains a short description of this Union-wide university exchange programme, and anyone who wants to know more can find out from the article on education and youth exactly why the EU offers a
EUROPE FROM A TO Z
programme of this type and what the other priorities of this policy area are. In
each case, cross references guide the reader to further reading. The chronology
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sets out key events of European integration from 1946 to 1996.
Balanced information is a vital element of opinion-forming on the basic questions of European policy outlined here. We invite you to take this opportunity of finding out about and discussing Europe. At the end of the book is a supplement giving references to other sources of information produced by the Commission to explain its point of view to the public. You can also find up-to-date information which expands on the contents of this book on the Internet under http:\\europa.eu.int. The European Commission and the European Parliament also have contact points in every Member State, and you will find their addresses at the end of this book. This edition of Europe from A to Z has its origins in a highly successful book published several years ago by the Institut f?r Europ?ische Politik in Bonn. We would like to thank the publishers of that book, Dr Werner Weidenfeld, Director of the Centrum f?r angewandte Politikforschung, Munich, Dr Wolfgang Wessels, Director of the Institut f?r Europ?ische Politik, Dr Mathias Jopp, Mr Gerhard Eickhorn, Managing Director of the Europa Union Verlag, and the editor, Ms Nicole Schley of the research group on Europe at the University of Munich, headed by Mr Josef Janning.
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