The European Union (EU) is a unique political and economic partnership that currently consists of 28 member states (see the map in the Appendix ). Built through a series of binding treaties, the Union is the latest stage in a process of integration begun after World War II to promote peace and economic recovery in Europe. Since the 1950s, this European integration project has expanded to encompass other economic sectors; a customs union; a single market in which capital, goods, services, and people move freely (known as the "four freedoms"); a common trade policy; a common agricultural policy; many aspects of social and environmental policy; and a common currency (the euro) that is used by 19 member states. Since the mid-1990s, EU members have also taken steps toward political integration, with decisions to develop a Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and efforts to promote cooperation in the area of Justice and Home Affairs (JHA). The EU is generally considered a cornerstone of European stability and prosperity, but the union faces a number of internal and external challenges. Perhaps most notable is "Brexit"—the United Kingdom's (UK's) looming exit from the EU following the June 2016 public referendum in which British voters favored leaving the bloc by 52% to 48%. The UK remains a full member of the EU until it completes withdrawal negotiations and formally exits the bloc (which is widely expected to occur in March 2019). Although Brexit may have political, economic, and institutional implications for the EU, this report largely addresses the EU and its institutions as they currently exist. For more information on the range of issues confronting the EU, including Brexit and concerns such as terrorism and migration, see CRS Report R44249, The European Union: Current Challenges and Future Prospects . EU member states work together through common institutions (see next question) to set policy and promote their collective interests. Does the EU Have a Defense Policy? Such calls have been driven by both the new security challenges facing Europe, including a resurgent Russia, and a desire to bolster the EU project in the wake of the UK vote to leave the bloc. Commentators also suggest that European concerns about the Trump Administration's commitment to NATO and transatlantic security could provide additional impetus to greater EU defense integration in the years ahead. The Schengen area of free movement encompasses 22 EU member states plus four non-EU countries. The United States has supported the European integration project since its inception in the 1950s as a way to help keep European nationalism in check, promote political reconciliation (especially between France and Germany), and prevent another catastrophic war on the European continent. Administrations and many Members of Congress have long viewed European integration as a way to foster democratic allies and strong trading partners in Europe. With the end of the Cold War, the United States strongly backed EU efforts to extend the political and economic benefits of membership to Central and Eastern Europe, and it has supported the EU aspirations of Turkey and the Western Balkan states. Despite the ups and downs in U.S.-EU relations over the years, U.S. and EU policymakers alike traditionally have valued the partnership as serving their respective overall strategic and economic interests. EU officials and many European governments also are uneasy with elements of the Trump Administration's "America First" foreign policy, and U.S.-EU divisions have emerged on a number of issues. The United States and the EU share the largest trade and investment relationship in the world. The EU response to the U.S. steel and aluminum tariffs has been multifaceted. On July 25, 2018, European Commission President Juncker and President Trump reached an initial agreement aimed at de-escalating U.S.-EU tensions on trade and tariffs.
The European Union (EU) is a political and economic partnership that represents a unique form of cooperation among sovereign countries. The EU is the latest stage in a process of integration begun after World War II, initially by six Western European countries, to foster interdependence and make another war in Europe unthinkable. The EU currently consists of 28 member states, including most of the countries of Central and Eastern Europe, and has helped to promote peace, stability, and economic prosperity throughout the European continent.
The EU has been built through a series of binding treaties. Over the years, EU member states have sought to harmonize laws and adopt common policies on an increasing number of economic, social, and political issues. EU member states share a customs union; a single market in which capital, goods, services, and people move freely; a common trade policy; and a common agricultural policy. Nineteen EU member states use a common currency (the euro), and 22 member states participate in the Schengen area of free movement in which internal border controls have been eliminated. In addition, the EU has been developing a Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP), which includes a Common Security and Defense Policy (CSDP), and pursuing cooperation in the area of Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) to forge common internal security measures. Member states work together through several EU institutions to set policy and to promote their collective interests.
In recent years, however, the EU has faced a number of internal and external crises. Most notably, in a June 2016 public referendum, voters in the United Kingdom (UK) backed leaving the EU. The looming British exit from the EU (dubbed "Brexit") comes amid multiple other challenges, including the rise of populist and to some extent anti-EU political parties, concerns about democratic backsliding in some member states (including Poland and Hungary), an influx of refugees and migrants, a heightened terrorism threat, and a resurgent Russia.
The United States has supported the European integration project since its inception in the 1950s as a means to prevent another catastrophic conflict on the European continent and foster democratic allies and strong trading partners. Today, the United States and the EU have a dynamic political partnership and share a huge trade and investment relationship. Despite periodic tensions in U.S.-EU relations over the years, U.S. and EU policymakers alike have viewed the partnership as serving both sides' overall strategic and economic interests.
EU leaders are anxious about the Trump Administration's commitment to the EU project, the transatlantic partnership, and free trade—especially amid the Administration's imposition of tariffs on EU steel and aluminum products since June 2018. In mid-July 2018, President Trump reportedly called the EU a "foe" on trade but subsequently reached an initial agreement with the EU later in the month aimed at de-escalating U.S.-EU tensions over trade and tariffs. Concerns also linger in Brussels about the implications of the Trump Administration's "America First" foreign policy and its positions on a range of international issues, including Russia, Iran, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, climate change, and the role of multilateral institutions.
This report serves as a primer on the EU. Despite the UK's vote to leave the EU, the UK remains a full member of the bloc until it completes withdrawal negotiations and officially exits the EU (expected to occur in March 2019). As such, this report largely addresses the EU and its institutions as they currently exist. It also briefly describes U.S.-EU political and economic relations that may be of interest in the 115th Congress. For more information on the EU project in the longer term, see CRS Report R44249, The European Union: Current Challenges and Future Prospects, by [author name scrubbed].