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 European Union - Goals
• The goals of the European Union are:
– promote peace, its values and the well-being of its citizens
– offer freedom, security and justice without internal borders
– sustainable development based on balanced economic growth
and price stability, a highly competitive market economy with full
employment and social progress, and environmental protection
– combat social exclusion and discrimination
– promote scientific and technological progress
– enhance economic, social and territorial cohesion and solidarity
among EU countries
– respect its rich cultural and linguistic diversity
– establish an economic and monetary union whose currency is the
euro.
 European Union - Values
• The EU values are common to the EU countries in a society in
which inclusion, tolerance, justice, solidarity and non-
discrimination prevail.
• These values are an integral part of our European way of life:
– Human dignity: It must be respected, protected and constitutes
the real basis of fundamental rights.
– Freedom: Being a European citizen also means enjoying political
rights. Every adult EU citizen has the right to stand as a candidate
and to vote in elections to the European Parliament. EU citizens
have the right to stand as candidate and to vote in their country of
residence, or in their country of origin.
– Democracy: The functioning of the EU is founded on
representative democracy. Being a European citizen also means
enjoying political rights. Every adult EU citizen has the right to
stand as a candidate and to vote in elections to the European
Parliament. EU citizens have the right to stand as candidate and to
vote in their country of residence, or in their country of origin.
– Equality: Equality is about equal rights for all citizens before
the law. The principle of equality between women and men
underpins all European policies and is the basis for European
integration. It applies in all areas. The principle of equal pay
for equal work became part of the Treaty of Rome in 1957.
Although inequalities still exist, the EU has made significant
progress.
– Rule of law: The EU is based on the rule of law. Everything
the EU does is founded on treaties, voluntarily and
democratically agreed by its EU countries. Law and justice
are upheld by an independent judiciary. The EU countries
gave final jurisdiction to the European Court of Justice which
judgements have to be respected by all.
– Human Rights: Human rights are protected by the EU Charter
of Fundamental Rights. These cover the right to be free from
discrimination on the basis of sex, racial or ethnic origin,
religion or belief, disability, age or sexual orientation, the
right to the protection of your personal data, and or the right
to get access to justice.
 European Goals and Values
• These goals and values form the basis of the EU and
are laid out in the Lisbon Treaty and the EU Charter
of Fundamental Rights

• In 2012, the EU was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize

for advancing the causes of peace, reconciliation,
democracy and human rights in Europe.
 EU Member countries - 28
Countries

Austria Italy

Belgium Latvia

Bulgaria Lithuania

Croatia Luxembourg

Cyprus Malta

Czechia Netherlands

Denmark Poland

Estonia Portugal

Finland Romania

France Slovakia

Germany Slovenia

Greece Spain

Hungary Sweden

Ireland United Kingdom

 EU Currency
• The Delors Report proposed a three-stage preparatory period for
economic and monetary union and the euro area, spanning the
period 1990 to 1999. European leaders accepted the
recommendations in the Delors Report.
• The New Treaty on European Union which contained the
provisions needed to implement the monetary union, was agreed
at the European Council held at Maastricht, the Netherlands, in
December 1991.
• After a decade of preparations, the euro was launched on 1
January 1999: for the first three years it was an ‘invisible’ currency,
only used for accounting purposes and electronic payments.
• Coins and Banknotes were launched on 1 January 2002, and in 12
EU Countries the biggest cash changeover in history took place.
 EU Currency
• The euro (€) is the official currency of 19 out of 28 EU
countries. These countries are collectively known as the
Eurozone.
• The euro is the most tangible proof of European
integration: around 341 million people use it every day,
making it the second most-used currency worldwide.
• A single currency offers many advantages:
– it makes it easier for companies to conduct cross-border
trade, the economy becomes more stable, and consumers
have more choice and opportunities.
– the benefits of the common currency are immediately
obvious to anyone travelling abroad or shopping online on
websites based in another EU country.
 Eurozone
• The euro is the most tangible proof of European
integration: around 341 million people use it every
day, making it the second most-used currency
worldwide.
• The benefits of the common currency are
immediately obvious to anyone travelling abroad or
shopping online on websites based in another EU
country.
 Euro Countries
• Austria
• Belgium
• Cyprus
• Estonia
• Finland
• France
• Germany
• Greece
• Ireland
• Italy
• Latvia
• Lithuania
• Luxembourg
• Malta
• the Netherlands
• Portugal
• Slovakia
• Slovenia
• Spain
 Non Euro Countries
• These are countries where the euro has still not been
adopted, but who will join once they have met the necessary
conditions.

• Mostly, it consists of countries of member states which

acceded to the Union in 2004, 2007 and 2013, after the euro
was launched in 2002.
– Bulgaria
– Croatia
– Czech Republic
– Hungary
– Poland
– Romania
– Sweden
 Convergence Criteria
• In order to adopt the euro, EU countries have to meet
specific economic conditions designed to ensure
economic convergence with the countries of the euro
area.
• Agreed in Maastricht by the EU Member States in 1991
as part of the preparations for introduction of the euro,
the convergence criteria are formally defined as a set of
macroeconomic indicators which measure:
– Price stability, to show inflation is controlled;
– Soundness and sustainability of public finances, through
limits on government borrowing and national debt to avoid
excessive deficit;
– Exchange-rate stability, through participation in the Exchange
Rate Mechanism (ERM II) for at least two years without
strong deviations from the ERM II central rate;
 SAARC
• The South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC) is the regional
intergovernmental organization and geopolitical
union of nations in South Asia. Its member states
include Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India,
Nepal, the Maldives, Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
 Inception of SAARC
• The South Asian Association for Regional
Cooperation (SAARC) was established with the
signing of the SAARC Charter in Dhaka on 8
December 1985. SAARC comprises of eight
Member States: Afghanistan, Bangladesh,
Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and
Sri Lanka. The Secretariat of the Association
was set up in Kathmandu on 17 January 1987.
 Article I - Objectives of SAARC
• The objectives of the Association as outlined in the SAARC Charter
are:
– to promote the welfare of the peoples of South Asia and to improve
their quality of life;
– to accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural
development in the region and
– to provide all individuals the opportunity to live in dignity and to realize
their full potentials;
– to promote and strengthen collective self-reliance among the countries
of South Asia;
– to contribute to mutual trust, understanding and appreciation of one
another's problems;
– to promote active collaboration and mutual assistance in the economic,
social, cultural, technical and scientific fields;
– to strengthen cooperation with other developing countries;
– to strengthen cooperation among themselves in international forums on
matters of common interests; and
– to cooperate with international and regional organizations with similar
aims and purposes.
 Article II - PRINCIPLES

• Cooperation within the framework of the

ASSOCIATION shall be based on respect for the
principles of sovereign equality, territorial integrity,
political independence, non-interference in the
internal affairs of other States and mutual benefit.
Article III - Meetings of the Heads of State
or Government and Article IV - Council of
ministers
• The Heads of State or Government shall meet once
a year or more often as and when considered
necessary by the Member States.
• Council of ministers: A Council of Ministers
consisting of the Foreign Ministers of the Member
States shall be established with the following
functions:
 Article V – Standing Committee
• The Standing Committee comprising the Foreign
Secretaries shall have the following functions:
a) overall monitoring and coordination of
programme of cooperation;
b) approval of projects and programmes, and the
modalities of their financing;
c) determination of inter-sectoral priorities;
d) mobilisation of regional and external resources;
e) identification of new areas of cooperation based
on appropriate studies.
 ASEAN
• The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or
ASEAN, was established on 8 August 1967 in
Bangkok, Thailand, with the signing of
the ASEAN Declaration (Bangkok Declaration)
by the Founding Fathers of ASEAN, namely
Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore
and Thailand.
ASEAN Countries
 The Aims and Purposes of ASEAN
• To accelerate the economic growth, social progress and cultural development in
the region through joint endeavours in the spirit of equality and partnership in
order to strengthen the foundation for a prosperous and peaceful community of
Southeast Asian Nations;
• To promote regional peace and stability through abiding respect for justice and the
rule of law in the relationship among countries of the region and adherence to the
principles of the United Nations Charter;
• To promote active collaboration and mutual assistance on matters of common
interest in the economic, social, cultural, technical, scientific and administrative
fields;
• To provide assistance to each other in the form of training and research facilities in
the educational, professional, technical and administrative spheres;
• To collaborate more effectively for the greater utilisation of their agriculture and
industries, the expansion of their trade, including the study of the problems of
international commodity trade, the improvement of their transportation and
communications facilities and the raising of the living standards of their peoples;
• To promote Southeast Asian studies; and
• To maintain close and beneficial cooperation with existing international and
regional organisations with similar aims and purposes, and explore all avenues for
even closer cooperation among themselves.
 FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES
• In their relations with one another, the ASEAN Member
States have adopted the following fundamental
principles, as contained in the Treaty of Amity and
Cooperation in Southeast Asia (TAC) of 1976:
– Mutual respect for the independence, sovereignty, equality,
territorial integrity, and national identity of all nations;
– The right of every State to lead its national existence free
from external interference, subversion or coercion;
– Non-interference in the internal affairs of one another;
– Settlement of differences or disputes by peaceful manner;
– Renunciation of the threat or use of force; and
– Effective cooperation among themselves.
 ASEAN Charter
• The ASEAN Charter serves as a firm foundation in achieving the
ASEAN Community by
– providing legal status and institutional framework for ASEAN.
– It also codifies ASEAN norms, rules and values;
– sets clear targets for ASEAN; and presents accountability and
compliance.
• The ASEAN Charter entered into force on 15 December 2008. A
gathering of the ASEAN Foreign Ministers was held at the ASEAN
Secretariat in Jakarta to mark this very historic occasion for ASEAN.
– With the entry into force of the ASEAN Charter, ASEAN will henceforth
operate under a new legal framework and establish a number of new
organs to boost its community-building process.
– In effect, the ASEAN Charter has become a legally binding agreement
among the 10 ASEAN Member States.
 World Trade Organisation
• The World Trade Organization (WTO) is the only global
international organization dealing with the rules of
trade between nations.

• At its heart are the WTO agreements, negotiated and

signed by the bulk of the world’s trading nations and
ratified in their parliaments.

• The goal is to help producers of goods and services,

exporters, and importers conduct their business.

• India joined on 1st January, 1995

 History of GATT
• On 1 January 1995, the WTO replaced GATT, which had been
in existence since 1947, as the organization overseeing the
multilateral trading system.
• The governments that had signed GATT were officially known
as “GATT contracting parties”.
• Upon signing the new WTO agreements (which include the
updated GATT, known as GATT 1994), they officially became
known as “WTO members”.
• It contains the 128 GATT signatories as at the end of 1994,
• Twenty-three countries signed the Final Act of the General
Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT) on 30 October 1947
after a period of intensive negotiations. The lead negotiators
had profoundly disagreed on the level of ambition to be
achieved by the negotiations but finally overcame their
differences
 What is WTO
• It is an organization for trade opening. It is a forum
for governments to negotiate trade agreements.
• It is a place for them to settle trade disputes.
• It operates a system of trade rules.
• Essentially, the WTO is a place where member
governments try to sort out the trade problems
they face with each other.
• The WTO is run by its member governments.
• All major decisions are made by the membership as
a whole, either by ministers (who usually meet at
least once every two years) or by their ambassadors
or delegates (who meet regularly in Geneva).
 10 Important things WTO do
• The world is complex.
• The World Trade Organization is complex and it tries
to reflect the complex and dynamic nature of trade
and the WTO’s trade rules.
– It highlights benefits of the trading system, but it doesn’t
claim that everything is perfect.
– Were it a perfect system, there would be no need for
further negotiations and for the system to evolve and
reform continually.
 10 Important things WTO do

• The WTO can ...

• 1 ... cut living costs and raise living standards
2 ... settle disputes and reduce trade tensions
3 ... stimulate economic growth and employment
4 ... cut the cost of doing business internationally
5 ... encourage good governance
6 ... help countries develop
7 ... give the weak a stronger voice
8 ... support the environment and health
9 ... contribute to peace and stability
10 ... be effective without hitting the headlines
 Organisation of Islamic Cooperation
• https://www.oic-oci.org/states/?lan=en