The European Union is a political and economic union that was established by the signing of the Maastricht Treaty in 1993. It consists of 27 European member states where 24 languages are spoken. The Euro (€) is the official currency in 20 of these states.
The countries are Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, and Sweden.
European flag; Flag of the Council of Europe
The flag of the Council of Europe which was originally introduced in 1955 was adopted by the Union, its design features a circle of twelve five pointed yellow stars on a blue field.
What is the purpose of the European Union?
The European Union policies aim to promote peace and well-being for its citizens. It seeks to provide freedom, security, and justice within its borders while managing immigration at its external borders.
The EU allows people, goods, and services to move freely between member countries. It also creates common laws and policies on issues such as trade, the environment, and human rights.
It is made up of seven principal decision-making institutions which are based in Brussels in Belgium, Frankfurt am Main in Germany, Luxembourg and Strasbourg in France. In 2020 The United Kingdom became the only member state to leave the Union.
The 7 decision-making institutions are the European Parliament, European Council, Council of the European Union, European Commission, Court of Justice of the European Union, European Central Bank and the European Court of Auditors.
In in other official languages the EU is known as: Bulgarian: Европейски съюз, Czech: Evropská unie, Danish: Den Europæiske Union, German: Europäische Union, Greek:Ευρωπαϊκή Ένωση, Spanish:Unión Europea, Estonian: Euroopa Liit, Finnish: Euroopan unioni, French : Union européenne, Irish: An tAontas Eorpach, Croatian: Europska unija, Hungarian: Európai Unió, Italian: Unione europea, Lithuanian: Europos Sąjunga, Latvian: Eiropas Savienība, Maltese: Unjoni Ewropea, DutchL Europese Unie, Polish: Unia Europejska, Portuguese: União Europeia, Romanian: Uniunea Europeană, Slovak: Európska únia, Slovene: Evropska unija, and Swedish: Europeiska unionen.
The Anthem of the Union is Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy”