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Introduction The European Union (EU) is an economic and political union of 27 countries located primarily in Europe, with a population of over 500 million people. It traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community, which was created after World War 2 to bind together the economies of its six founding countries, in the hopes of making another European war impossible. It was incorporated into a new organisation, the European Economic Community, in 1958, which was the basis for today's European Union. Over the decades since its creation, the EU has grown in size through a process of enlargement, where countries seek to join the EU, and in power through the gradual expansion of its role into new policy areas. In 2009 the Charter of Fundamental Rights, which enshrines certain political, social, and economic rights for EU citizens, was was made legally binding on all EU states. The EU operates above the national level but is more than just an international organisation. Some areas of lawmaking are made solely by the EU's independent institutions, while other areas are made through negotiation between member states. Important institutions of the EU include the European Commission, the Council of Ministers, the European Council and the European Court of Justice. The European Parliament is the EU's legislative body and is elected every five years by EU citizens. A key focus of the EU's role is the single market, a trade bloc in which all member states apply the same set of laws, and which ensures the free movement of people, goods, services, and capital. Examples of this are the passport-free Schengen area, the Erasmus student exchange programme and a common currency, the euro. The EU's other roles include making laws on justice and home affairs, and maintaining common policies on trade, agriculture, fishing, the environment and regional development. The EU has also created the Common Foreign and Security Policy, which gives it a limited role in European defence and foreign policy. It has its own diplomatic service and is represented at the United Nations, WTO, G8 and G-20. edit   Selected article The European Commission forms part of the executive branch of the European Union. It is one of the Union's three main political Institutions. It is a cabinet government of 27 Commissioners led by a Commission President. The current President is José Manuel Barroso, who leads the Barroso Commission who took office in 2004. It is responsible for proposing legislation, implementing decisions, upholding the Union's treaties and the general day-to-day running of the Union. The Commission is based in the Berlaymont building in Brussels and is supported by an administrative body of about 23,000 European civil servants divided into departments called Directorate-General. The term "Commission" can either mean the entire administrative body of the Commission or just the college of 27 Commissioners. Its internal working languages are English, French and German. edit   Selected city Athens is the capital and largest city of Greece. Named after goddess Athena, Athens is a cosmopolitan metropolis with a population of 3.7 million people. The Athens metropolitan area constitutes the center of economic, financial, industrial, cultural and political life in Greece. The city is also rapidly becoming a business center in the European Union. Ancient Athens was a powerful polis city-state and a renowned center of learning, home of Plato's Academy and Aristotle's Lyceum. It is often referred to as the cradle of Western civilization, largely due to the impact of its cultural and political achievements during the 5th and 4th centuries BCE on the rest of the then known European Continent. The classical era heritage is still evident in the city, portrayed through a number of ancient monuments and artworks, the most famous being the Parthenon on the Acropolis. Athens was the host city of the first modern-day Olympic Games and, more recently, of the 2004 Summer Olympics. edit   Selected picture Photo credit: Solipsist The Sun rising over Stonehenge on the morning of the Summer Solstice (21st June 2005). edit   Did you know? ...that the presidency of the EU Council rotates every half year? ...that Greenland is the only territory ever to have left the EU? ...that the EU's parliamentary election is the biggest transnational election in the world? edit   Featured content  Members by political system  Euro gold and silver commemorative coins (Belgium)  European Parliament  European Commission  European Union Portal edit   Subportals Austria Belgium Bulgaria Czech Republic Cyprus Denmark Estonia Finland France Germany Greece Hungary Ireland Italy Latvia Lithuania Luxembourg Malta Netherlands Poland Portugal Romania Slovakia Slovenia Spain Sweden United Kingdom edit   Related Portals Europe Eurovision United Nations NATO Brussels ESA edit   Associated Wikimedia

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