European Union

The European Union (EU) is a family of democratic European countries, committed to working together for peace and prosperity. It was set up with the aim of ending the frequent wars between neighbors, including World War II. The European integration is a pooling of sovereignty so that decisions on specific matter of joint interests can be made democratically at an European level. Political and economic integration was very necessary for preventing killing and destruction from happening again. The EU has resulted in peace, stability, prosperity, higher living standards, better education, and the creation of a common currency (the Euro). The EU allowed people the ability to travel freely throughout most of the continent. An importance of the Union was to create cooperation between members of the Union, representing great compromise between nations.

Although there are many positives and strengths within the European Union and its integration, there are also some problems. As a result of the extension of the EU many eastern Europeans feared that their countries would be dominated by investments from their neighbors, while western Europeans feared the possibility of an influx of low wages among workers in new member states. The plans for a more unified Europe encountered temporary resistance with the rejection of the new constitution. This caused European leaders to lower their expectations. One major problem faced was the clash of cultures, mainly religion and how they relate to each other. This is shown through Europeans unwillingness of admitting the Islamic nation of Turkey into the EU. The adding of culture where religious intolerance is the norm creates new conflicts.

The European Union has enlarged greatly, and has been successful in intensifying the cohesion of European nations. The EU has created a common commercial policy and common agricultural policy. Both policies contributed to prosperity and harmonious development throughout the nations. Social...