The European Union: Questions and Answers (open access)

The European Union: Questions and Answers

This report describes the European Union (EU), its evolution, governing institutions, trade policy, and efforts to forge common foreign and defense policies. The report also addresses the EU-U.S. and EU-NATO relationships, which may be of interest to the second session of the 110th Congress. It will be updated as events warrant. For more information, see CRS Report RS21344, European Union Enlargement, by Kristin Archick, and CRS Report RL34381, European Union-U.S. Trade and Investment Relations: Key Issues, coordinated by Raymond Ahearn.
Date: July 3, 2008
Creator: Archick, Kristin
System: The UNT Digital Library
The European Union's Reform Process: The Lisbon Treaty (open access)

The European Union's Reform Process: The Lisbon Treaty

In December 2007, leaders of the European Union (EU) signed the Lisbon Treaty, which seeks to reform the EU's governing institutions and decisionmaking processes to enable a larger EU to operate more effectively. This new treaty represents the latest stage in a reform process begun in 2002 and essentially replaces the proposed EU "constitution" that foundered after French and Dutch voters rejected it in referendums in 2005. In June 2008, Irish voters rejected the Lisbon Treaty, and have thrown its future into doubt. This report provides background information on EU reform efforts and possible implications for U.S.-EU relations that may be of interest in the second session of the 110th Congress.
Date: July 3, 2008
Creator: Archick, Kristin
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Parliamentary-Style Question Period: Proposals and Issues for Congress (open access)

A Parliamentary-Style Question Period: Proposals and Issues for Congress

This report surveys how question periods are conducted in Britain and other parliamentary democracies, examines previous proposals for question periods in the United States, considers potential advantages and disadvantages of a question period, and outlines some legislative considerations for policymakers considering a question period for Congress.
Date: July 29, 2008
Creator: Glassman, Matthew E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
U.S. - EU Poultry Dispute (open access)

U.S. - EU Poultry Dispute

This report discusses the European Union (EU) refusal to accept U.S. imports of poultry treated with antimicrobial rinses. Prior to 1997, when the prohibition took effect, U.S. exports of broiler and turkey meat to the 15 countries that then constituted the EU were reported to total nearly 32,000 MT with a value of $44.4 million.
Date: February 4, 2009
Creator: Becker, Geoffrey S.
System: The UNT Digital Library
A Parliamentary-Style Question Period: Proposals and Issues for Congress (open access)

A Parliamentary-Style Question Period: Proposals and Issues for Congress

This report surveys how question periods are conducted in Britain and other parliamentary democracies, examines previous proposals for question periods in the United States, considers potential advantages and disadvantages of a question period, and outlines some legislative considerations for policymakers considering a question period for Congress.
Date: March 5, 2009
Creator: Glassman, Matthew E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Financial Crisis: Impact on and Response by the European Union (open access)

The Financial Crisis: Impact on and Response by the European Union

According to the most recent National Threat Assessment, the global financial crisis and its geopolitical implications pose the primary near-term security concern of the United States. Over the short run, both the EU and the United States are attempting to resolve the financial crisis while stimulating domestic demand to stem the economic downturn. These efforts have born little progress so far as the economic recession and the financial crisis have become reinforcing events, causing EU governments to forge policy responses to both crises. This report discusses this situation in detail and also discusses individual efforts by both the U.S. and EU to combat the effects of the crisis.
Date: June 24, 2009
Creator: Jackson, James K.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The European Parliament (open access)

The European Parliament

The European Parliament (EP) is one of the three key institutions of the European Union (EU), and the only EU institution whose members are directly elected. This report discusses the construction and history of the EP, its role in functions of the EU as well as internationally, various international supports and criticisms of the EP, and the EP's ties with the U.S. Congress.
Date: July 22, 2009
Creator: Archick, Kristin & Mix, Derek E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The G-20 and International Economic Cooperation: Background and Implications for Congress (open access)

The G-20 and International Economic Cooperation: Background and Implications for Congress

This report discusses the background of the G-20 (an international forum for discussing and coordinating economic policies) and some of the issues that it has addressed. It includes historic background on the work of the G-20, information about how the group operates, overviews of G-20 summits, major issues that the group is likely to address and the likely effectiveness of the G-20 in the near future.
Date: December 9, 2009
Creator: Nelson, Rebecca M.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The United Kingdom: Issues for the United States (open access)

The United Kingdom: Issues for the United States

This report discusses the relations between United Kingdom (UK) and the United States, including a sense of shared history, values, and culture, as well as extensive and long-established cooperation on a wide range of foreign policy and security issues.
Date: May 14, 2010
Creator: Mix, Derek E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The United Kingdom: Issues for the United States (open access)

The United Kingdom: Issues for the United States

This report discusses the relations between United Kingdom (UK) and the United States, including a sense of shared history, values, and culture, as well as extensive and long-established cooperation on a wide range of foreign policy and security issues.
Date: June 29, 2010
Creator: Mix, Derek E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The G-20 and International Economic Cooperation: Background and Implications for Congress (open access)

The G-20 and International Economic Cooperation: Background and Implications for Congress

This report discusses the background of the G-20 (an international forum for discussing and coordinating economic policies) and some of the issues that it has addressed. It includes historic background on the work of the G-20, information about how the group operates, overviews of G-20 summits, major issues that the group is likely to address and the likely effectiveness of the G-20 in the near future. The members of the G-20 include Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, and the European Union.
Date: August 10, 2010
Creator: Nelson, Rebecca M.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The European Union's Response to the 2007-2009 Financial Crisis (open access)

The European Union's Response to the 2007-2009 Financial Crisis

This report examines the EU responses to the financial crisis through changes to the financial regulatory structure at the EU level as well as the member country level. The countries examined are Germany and the United Kingdom, which have single financial regulators; the Netherlands, which has a twin peaks regulatory structure; and Spain, which has a functional structure.
Date: August 13, 2010
Creator: Eubanks, Walter W.
System: The UNT Digital Library
European Union Enlargement: A Status Report on Turkey's Accession Negotiations (open access)

European Union Enlargement: A Status Report on Turkey's Accession Negotiations

This report provides a brief overview of the European Union's (EU) accession process; Turkey's path to EU membership; the impact of the Cyprus problem; and a review of the United States' interest in Turkey's future in the European Union.
Date: November 2, 2010
Creator: Morelli, Vincent
System: The UNT Digital Library
The European Parliament (open access)

The European Parliament

The European Parliament (EP) is one of the three key institutions of the European Union (EU), and the only EU institution whose members are directly elected. This report discusses the construction and history of the EP, its role in functions of the EU as well as internationally, various international supports and criticisms of the EP, and the EP's ties with the U.S. Congress.
Date: November 5, 2010
Creator: Archick, Kristin & Mix, Derek E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The European Union: Questions and Answers (open access)

The European Union: Questions and Answers

This report provides a brief overview of the European Union (EU), an economic and political partnership between 27 sovereign member states. The report describes the formation of the EU, the three main institutions of the EU, and the EU's relationship with the United States.
Date: November 5, 2010
Creator: Archick, Kristin & Mix, Derek E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
European Union Enlargement: A Status Report on Turkey's Accession Negotiations (open access)

European Union Enlargement: A Status Report on Turkey's Accession Negotiations

This report provides a brief overview of the European Union's (EU) accession process; Turkey's path to EU membership; the impact of the Cyprus problem; and a review of the United States' interest in Turkey's future in the European Union.
Date: November 26, 2010
Creator: Morelli, Vincent
System: The UNT Digital Library
European Union Enlargement: A Status Report on Turkey's Accession Negotiations (open access)

European Union Enlargement: A Status Report on Turkey's Accession Negotiations

This report provides a brief overview of the European Union's (EU) accession process, Turkey's path to EU membership, and the impact of the Cyprus problem.
Date: January 10, 2011
Creator: Morelli, Vincent
System: The UNT Digital Library
The Future of the Eurozone and U.S. Interests (open access)

The Future of the Eurozone and U.S. Interests

Seventeen of the European Union's 27 member states share an economic and monetary union (EMU) with the euro as a single currency. These countries are effectively referred to as the Eurozone. What has become known as the Eurozone crisis began in early 2010 when financial markets were shaken by heightened concerns that the fiscal positions of a number of Eurozone countries, beginning with Greece, were unsustainable. This report provides background information and analysis on the future of the Eurozone in six parts, including discussions on the origins and design challenges of the Eurozone, proposals to define the Eurozone crisis, possible scenarios for the future of the Eurozone, and the implications of the Eurozone crisis for U.S. economic and political interests.
Date: January 10, 2011
Creator: Ahearn, Raymond J.; Jackson, James K.; Nelson, Rebecca M. & Weiss, Martin A.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The European Parliament (open access)

The European Parliament

Report that discusses the construction and history of the European Parliament (EP), its role in functions of the EU as well as internationally, various international supports and criticisms of the EP, and the EP's ties with the U.S. Congress.
Date: January 21, 2011
Creator: Archick, Kristin & Mix, Derek E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The European Union: Questions and Answers (open access)

The European Union: Questions and Answers

This report provides a brief overview of the European Union (EU), an economic and political partnership between 27 sovereign member states. The report describes the formation of the EU, the three main institutions of the EU, and the EU's relationship with the United States.
Date: January 24, 2011
Creator: Archick, Kristin & Mix, Derek E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
Climate Change and the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS): Looking to 2020 (open access)

Climate Change and the EU Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS): Looking to 2020

This report looks at new European Union (EU) emissions standards in trade.
Date: January 27, 2011
Creator: Parker, Larry
System: The UNT Digital Library
EU-U.S. Economic Ties: Framework, Scope, and Magnitude (open access)

EU-U.S. Economic Ties: Framework, Scope, and Magnitude

This report provides background information and analysis of the U.S.-EU economic relationship for members of the 112th Congress as they contemplate the costs and benefits of closer U.S. economic ties with the EU. It examines the economic and political framework of the relationship and the scope and magnitude of the ties based on data from various sources. In addition, the report analyzes the implications these factors have for U.S. economic policy toward the EU.
Date: January 27, 2011
Creator: Cooper, William H.
System: The UNT Digital Library
The European Union's Reform Process: The Lisbon Treaty (open access)

The European Union's Reform Process: The Lisbon Treaty

This report provides information on the Lisbon Treaty and possible U.S.-EU implications that may be of interest to the 112th Congress.
Date: February 8, 2011
Creator: Archick, Kristin & Mix, Derek E.
System: The UNT Digital Library
U.S.-EU Trade and Economic Relations: Key Policy Issues for the 112th Congress (open access)

U.S.-EU Trade and Economic Relations: Key Policy Issues for the 112th Congress

This report examines the trade relations between the United States, the European Union, and China.
Date: February 17, 2011
Creator: Ahearn, Raymond J.
System: The UNT Digital Library