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Section
3: Glossary
By Alphabetical
Order
Accession Countries
The ten countries from Central and Eastern Europe
and the Baltic region (Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary,
Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Romania, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia)
plus Cyprus, Malta and Turkey have applied for membership to the European
Union. These are also known as the applicant countries. (http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/agenda2000/index_en.htm)
Accession Partnership
Document that sets out in a single framework
the priority areas for further work identified in the Commission’s Regular
Report on the relevant accession country (specifying short and medium
term priorities); the financial means available to help the relevant accession
country implement these priorities; and the conditions that will apply
to that assistance. The document is drafted by the European Commission
in consultation with the government of the relevant accession country
and on the basis of the principles, priorities, intermediate objectives,
and conditions that have been decided by the Council. The first Accession
Partnerships were drafted on the basis of the Commission’s Opinion on
the accession country, and were approved in March 1998. The second Accession
Partnerships were prepared on the basis of the Commission’s Regular Reports
of October 1999, and were issued in late 1999. (http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/docs/index.htm).
Acquis Communautaire
Approximately 20,000 laws and regulations that
have been developed over the years by the EU member states. The full acceptance
of the rights and obligations by the candidate countries is an important
aspect of the accession process.
Agenda 2000
The document which contains the European Commission’s
recommendations for the Union’s financial framework for the years 2000-2006;
the future development of the Union’s policies; and the strategy for enlargement
of the Union. Submitted to the Council and European Parliament on 15 July
1997.
Applicant Countries
See accession countries.
Copenhagen Criteria
In June 1993, the European Union’s Heads of
State and Government met in Copenhagen for the European Council and agreed
on set of criteria that must be met by countries posing their candidature
for EU membership. These criteria are:
- The achievement of stable institutions
guaranteeing democracy, the rule of law, human rights and respect for
and protection of minorities (also known as the political criteria);
- The existence of a functioning
market economy as well as the capacity to cope with competitive pressure
and market forces within the Union; and
- The ability to take on the obligations
of membership, including adherence to the aims of political and monetary
union. This involves the adoption of the acquis communautaire (see above).
Council of Europe
(CoE)
The Council of Europe is an international
organization based in Strasbourg, France. Comprising forty member states,
its main role is to strengthen democracy, human rights and the rule of
law throughout its membership. Its most important instrument is the adoption
of conventions, in particular the European Convention on Human Rights.
On 1 November 1998, a permanent European Court of Human Rights was established
to enforce the European Convention on Human Rights.
Council of the
European Union
The Council of the European Union
(Council) is the organ that represents the 15 EU member states. It performs
the role of legislative chamber and also has executive powers.
The Council is comprised
of one representative at ministerial level from each member state. Council
members are politically accountable to their national parliaments. Each
of the members acts as President for a period of six months.
The Council exerts
legislative and decision-making powers. It is also the forum in which
the representatives of the governments of the EU member states can declare
their interests and try to reach compromises.
The Council ensures
general co-ordination of the activities of the European Union, in particular
the establishment of an internal market. The Council is also responsible
for intergovernmental cooperation, in common foreign and security policy
and in the areas of justice and home affairs, including matters such as
immigration and asylum, combating terrorism and drugs and judicial cooperation.
Each member state
has a Permanent Representation (equivalent to an embassy) to the European
Union in Brussels. The heads of the Permanent Representations are called
Permanent Representatives. The fifteen Permanent Representations meet
each week in the Permanent Representative Committee (COREPER). This Committee
is divided into two parts, one composed of ambassadors and the other of
their deputies. This Committee is tasked with preparing the Council’s
work.
Directorates-General
(DGs)
The appointment of
a new Commission in September 1999 was accompanied by a reorganization
of the Commission administration. There are now 36 departments, and directorates-general
are no longer referred to by number. DGs cover all areas of Community
policy. They are structured hierarchically on a departmental basis similar
to a national ministry. DGs act in response to initiatives coming either
from the Commission, Council and/or Parliament. In principle, the DGs
covering areas of interest to NGOs are:
-
Common Service
for External Relations (manages all aspects - technical and operational,
financial and accounting, contractual and legal - of the Community’
s aid to non-member countries. It is also responsible for audits and
evaluations. The abbreviation used is SCR).
Europe Agreements
Bilateral agreements providing
for cooperation in political, economic, trade, cultural and other areas
such as competition, state aids, and approximation of laws. These agreements
form the legal basis for the EU’s relationships with the relevant countries.
Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland,
Romania, the Slovak Republic and Slovenia have all signed Europe Agreements.
European Commission
The European Commission is the
executive body of the European Union. The European Commission fulfils
three main functions:
- It initiates European policies,
by making proposals for all new legislation on the basis of what is
considered best for the Union and its citizens. Once a Commission proposal
has been submitted to the Council of Ministers and the European Parliament,
the three institutions work together to produce a law.
- It acts as the guardian of the
EU treaties to ensure that EU legislation is applied correctly by the
EU member states. If necessary, it may take action against those who
fail to respect their treaty obligations.
- It is the executive body of the
EU responsible for implementing and managing policy. For instance, it
is responsible for managing the Union’s annual budget and running the
Structural Funds. The Commission also negotiates trade and cooperation
agreements with non-EU member states and groups of countries on behalf
of the Union.
Leading the Commission
are 20 Commissioners, persons who have often either sat in national parliaments
or the European Parliament, or who have held high office in their home
countries. The EU heads of state or government, meeting in the European
Council, choose the President of the Commission. The remaining Commissioners
are nominated by the governments of the 15 EU member states in consultation
with the new Commission President. The President and other Commissioners
must be approved by the parliament.
European Economic
Area (EEA)
The European Economic
Area was created in January 1994. It is currently comprised of all EU
member states and Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. The EEA agreement
grants the three countries the freedoms of the single market (free movement
of goods, services and people) and requires them to adopt most EU policies
on mergers, state aids, consumer protection, labour markets and the environment.
European Parliament
(EP)
The power of the
European Parliament is divided into three categories:
- Legislative – originally given
only a consultative role, the EP now has the power to amend and adopt
legislation.
- Budgetary – the EP approves the
European Union’s annual budget. It can propose modifications and amendments
to the Commission’s initial proposals and positions taken by the EU
member states in the Council. In extraordinary circumstances, the EP
may even vote to reject the budget. The President of the Parliament
signs the budget into law.
- Supervision – the EP exercises
overall political supervision over the manner in which the Union’s policies
are conducted.
The current Parliament
(re-elected in June 1999) consists of 626 members from approximately 100
political parties, organised in eight political groups. Most of the work
of the EP is conducted in its 20 committees covering all areas of the
Union’s activities from agriculture to common foreign and security policy.
ISPA
The Instrument
for Structural Policies for Pre-Accession (ISPA) is a program of assistance
for the accession countries. ISPA will be effective from the year 2000
until each country’s date of accession. However, at time of writing it
is unclear when exactly in 2000 the money will be available. The assistance
from this fund will be targeted at two areas: the environment (help to
the candidate countries to meet with the investment requirements needed
to conform to the Community legislation) and transport (to improve connections
between CEE countries and trans-European networks). The annual budget
for ISPA will be 1 billion Euro per year (2000-2006).
Member States
There
are fifteen member states of the European Union. The EU member states
are Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland,
Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and the United
Kingdom.
National (Phare)
Program
An annual program
agreed bilaterally between the European Commission and each applicant
country, which defines how the Phare funds for a specific country will
be allocated. (http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/pas/phare/publications/publist.htm)
National Program
for the Adoption of the Acquis (NPAA)
The NPAA is the
document adopted by each applicant country that sets out a timetable for
achieving the priorities and intermediate objectives as defined in the
Accession Partnership and, where possible and relevant, indicates the
necessary staff and financial resources. Thus, the NPAA is the applicant
country’s response to the Accession Partnership and outlines how it aims
to adopt and apply the acquis.
Newly Independent
States (NIS)
Armenia, Azerbaijan,
Belarus, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russian Federation,
Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. Although technically
not part of NIS, Mongolia is often grouped with these countries for the
purposes of EU programs.
Opinion
The European Commission’s
analysis of the situation in each applicant country and the candidate’s
capacity to assume obligations of EU membership designed to assist the
Council in its decision on opening negotiations. Published as part of
the Agenda 2000 in July 1997. (http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/intro/ag2000_opinions.htm)
Phare
The overall objective
of the Phare program is to help the candidate countries prepare to join
the European Union. Initially covering only Poland and Hungary, it has
since been extended to Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, the Czech
Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, FYR Macedonia, Romania, the Slovak
Republic, and Slovenia. Activities in Croatia are being reviewed in the
light of the 2000 elections.
Following the publication
of the European Commission’s Opinions (July 1997) on accession of the
candidate EU member states, the Phare Program switched from being ‘demand
driven’ to ‘accession driven’. From 1998 onwards, the Phare program is
based on the Accession Partnerships, which indicate the areas of the Copenhagen
criteria (see above) where candidate EU member states need to make further
progress in order to become full members of the EU. Phare provides both
technical assistance and investment support to help candidate EU member
states implement their own National Programme for the Adoption of the
Acquis. The five-year financial allocation for Phare for 1995-99 was 6.7
billion Euro. For the period 2000-2006, the annual budget of the Phare
program for the CEE accession countries will be approximately 1.5 billion
Euro per year.
Regular Report
from the Commission on Progress towards Accession (Regular Report)
The Regular Reports,
prepared by the European Commission for submission to the Council, describe
the progress of each candidate country towards accession in the light
of the Copenhagen criteria, in particular the rate of adoption of the
acquis. The report is based on numerous sources of information, including
the governments of the candidate countries, reports and resolutions of
the European Parliament, international organizations, and NGOs. The reports
are published in October of each year, and the Commission welcomes information
to help in drafting the reports in June of that year.
(http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/enlargement/docs/index.htm)
SAPARD
The Special Accession
Program for Agriculture and Rural Development (SAPARD) will help candidate
countries deal with the implementation of the acquis communautaire in
the area of common agricultural policy and structural development for
the agricultural sector and rural areas. The annual budget for SAPARD
will be approximately 500 million Euro per year. Funds will be available
from 2000 until each country has joined the EU. As with ISPA, it is not
clear when exactly this money will become available as the Commission
and candidate countries are still working on the detailed plan for its
implementation. Among the priorities for funding under this program are
diversifying economic activities in rural areas, and improving vocational
training.
Structural Funds
The structural
funds are used to finance Community structural aid, mainly to the poorer
regions, in order to strengthen the EU’s economic and social cohesion
making a single market across the EU possible. The structural funds were
reviewed in 1998 and now cover three objectives:
Objective 1:
development of regions that are progressing at a slower pace and the development
of regions with extremely low population density (regions in Finland and
Sweden) (approximately 70 percent of funds);
Objective 2:
economic and social conversion of regions in structural crisis (approximately
12 percent);
Objective 3:
development of human resources (approximately 12 percent).
At present, these
funds are only available to EU member states. However, the candidate countries
are being encouraged to build up structures for the use of funds they
currently receive which can be used on accession for implementing and
managing the structural funds.
(http://www.europa.eu.int/comm/regional_policy/index_en.htm)
Tacis
The Tacis Program
is an initiative for the Newly Independent States and Mongolia, which
promotes the development of economic and political links between the European
Union and partner countries. Since it’s inception in 1991, it has launched
more than 3,000 projects worth over 3.3 billion Euro.
A new regulation
was adopted on 29 December 1999 for the years 2000-2006. The new program
focuses on the following areas: support for institutional, legal and administrative
reform; support to the private sector and assistance for economic development;
support in addressing the social consequences of transition; development
of infrastructure networks; promotion of environmental protection and
management of natural resources; and development of the rural economy.
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