Legal Dictionary of Pakistan

European Union

An association of European nations, with the purpose of achieving full economic unity (and eventual political union) by agreeing to eliminate barriers to the free movement of capital, goods, and labor among the member-nations. ( The European Union was formed as the European Economic Community (EEC) by the Treaty of Rome in 1957, and later renamed the European Community (EC). The European Community became the European Union when the Maastricht Treaty on European Union took effect in November 1993. As of 1999, Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and Sweden had full membership privileges. - Abbr. EU.