integration

Donald Trump’s second U.S. presidency marks a turning point for Europe. The United States is no longer a reliable security guarantor, trading partner, or defender of the rules-based international order. Aggressive tariff policies, growing...

The European Council is one of, if not, the key institution of the European Union (EU). Founded about 50 years ago, in December 1974, it comprises the Heads of State or Government of the member states, thus linking the national and European levels....

With the Treaty of Lisbon, the European Council became an institution of the European Union (EU) that is fully integrated into the institutional framework. In this way, the originally intergovernmental institution was linked to the supranational...

This contribution analyses the role of the European Council in the foreign and security policy of the European Union (EU) as both the architect of the system of external action and the provider of guidelines for policies in trade, enlargement,...

This article is a proposal to distinguish major periods in the history of the European Council since its founding in 1974: the period before, starting with the European Coal and Steel Community (1951–1974); then its informal incubation period...

The European Council and its President have, in many ways, a sui generis character. The President is more than a chairperson during international summits but has less power than a Head of State in a presidential system. His task is to steer the work...

The European Council has played a prominent role in the negotiations on the multiannual financial framework (MFF) of the European Union (EU) in six rounds so far. The European Council dominates the MFF negotiations and largely determines their...