Statistical information European Union 2010
European Union in the World
European Union - Introduction 2010
top of pageBackground:
Following the two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century a number of European leaders in the late 1940s became convinced that the only way to establish a lasting peace was to unite the two chief belligerent nations - France and Germany - both economically and politically. In 1950 the French Foreign Minister Robert SCHUMAN proposed an eventual union of all Europe the first step of which would be the integration of the coal and steel industries of Western Europe. The following year the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was set up when six members Belgium France West Germany Italy Luxembourg and the Netherlands signed the Treaty of Paris.
The ECSC was so successful that within a few years the decision was made to integrate other parts of the countries' economies. In 1957 the Treaties of Rome created the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) and the six member states undertook to eliminate trade barriers among themselves by forming a common market. In 1967 the institutions of all three communities were formally merged into the European Community (EC) creating a single Commission a single Council of Ministers and the European Parliament. Members of the European Parliament were initially selected by national parliaments but in 1979 the first direct election
In 1973 the first enlargement of the EC took place with the addition of Denmark Ireland and the United Kingdom. The 1980s saw further membership expansion with Greece joining in 1981 and Spain and Portugal in 1986. The 1992 Treaty of Maastricht laid the basis for further forms of cooperation in foreign and defense policy in judicial and internal affairs and in the creation of an economic and monetary union - including a common currency. This further integration created the European Union (EU). In 1995 Austria Finland and Sweden joined the EU raising the membership total to 15.
A new currency the euro was launched in world money markets on 1 January 1999; it became the unit of exchange for all of the EU states except the United Kingdom Sweden and Denmark. In 2002 citizens of the 12 euro-area countries (the European Monetary Union or EMU) began using the euro banknotes and coins. Ten new countries joined the EU in 2004 - Cyprus the Czech Republic Estonia Hungary Latvia Lithuania Malta Poland Slovakia and Slovenia - and in 2007 Bulgaria and Romania joined bringing the current membership to 27. In order to ensure that the EU can continue to function efficiently with an expanded membership the Treaty of Nice (in force as of 1 February 2003) set forth rules streamlining the size and procedures of EU institutions. An effort to establish an EU constitution begun in October 2004 failed to attain unanimous ratification. A new effort undertaken in June 2007 created an Intergovernmental Conference to formulate a political agreement - initially known as the Reform Treaty but subsequently referred to as the Treaty of Lisbon - which would serve as a constitution. Unlike the constitution however the Treaty of Lisbon sought to amend existing treaties rather than replace them. In October 2009 an Irish referendum approved the Treaty (overturning a previous rejection) and cleared the way for an ultimate unanimous endorsement - the Czech Republic signed on soon after. Treaty implementation began on 1 December 2009. In 2010 the prospect of a Greek default on its euro-denominated debt created severe strains within the EMU and raised the question of whether a member country might be removed.
The ECSC was so successful that within a few years the decision was made to integrate other parts of the countries' economies. In 1957 the Treaties of Rome created the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) and the six member states undertook to eliminate trade barriers among themselves by forming a common market. In 1967 the institutions of all three communities were formally merged into the European Community (EC) creating a single Commission a single Council of Ministers and the European Parliament. Members of the European Parliament were initially selected by national parliaments but in 1979 the first direct election
In 1973 the first enlargement of the EC took place with the addition of Denmark Ireland and the United Kingdom. The 1980s saw further membership expansion with Greece joining in 1981 and Spain and Portugal in 1986. The 1992 Treaty of Maastricht laid the basis for further forms of cooperation in foreign and defense policy in judicial and internal affairs and in the creation of an economic and monetary union - including a common currency. This further integration created the European Union (EU). In 1995 Austria Finland and Sweden joined the EU raising the membership total to 15.
A new currency the euro was launched in world money markets on 1 January 1999; it became the unit of exchange for all of the EU states except the United Kingdom Sweden and Denmark. In 2002 citizens of the 12 euro-area countries (the European Monetary Union or EMU) began using the euro banknotes and coins. Ten new countries joined the EU in 2004 - Cyprus the Czech Republic Estonia Hungary Latvia Lithuania Malta Poland Slovakia and Slovenia - and in 2007 Bulgaria and Romania joined bringing the current membership to 27. In order to ensure that the EU can continue to function efficiently with an expanded membership the Treaty of Nice (in force as of 1 February 2003) set forth rules streamlining the size and procedures of EU institutions. An effort to establish an EU constitution begun in October 2004 failed to attain unanimous ratification. A new effort undertaken in June 2007 created an Intergovernmental Conference to formulate a political agreement - initially known as the Reform Treaty but subsequently referred to as the Treaty of Lisbon - which would serve as a constitution. Unlike the constitution however the Treaty of Lisbon sought to amend existing treaties rather than replace them. In October 2009 an Irish referendum approved the Treaty (overturning a previous rejection) and cleared the way for an ultimate unanimous endorsement - the Czech Republic signed on soon after. Treaty implementation began on 1 December 2009. In 2010 the prospect of a Greek default on its euro-denominated debt created severe strains within the EMU and raised the question of whether a member country might be removed.
European Union - Geography 2010
top of pageLocation: Europe between the North Atlantic Ocean in the west and Russia Belarus and Ukraine to the east
Geographic coordinates
Map reference: Europe
Area
Total: 4,324,782 km²
Comparative: less than one-half the size of the US
Land boundaries
Total: 12,441 km
Border countries: (16) Albania 282 km; Andorra 120.3 km; Belarus 1050 km; Croatia 999 km; Holy See 3.2 km; Liechtenstein 34.9 km; Macedonia 394 km; Moldova 450 km; Monaco 4.4 km; Norway 2,348 km; Russia 2,257 km; San Marino 39 km; Serbia 945 km; Switzerland 1811 km; Turkey 446 km; Ukraine 1257 km
Note: data for European Continent only
Coastline: 65,993 km
Maritime claims: NA
Climate: cold temperate; potentially subarctic in the north to temperate; mild wet winters; hot dry summers in the south
Terrain: fairly flat along the Baltic and Atlantic coast; mountainous in the central and southern areas
Elevation
Extremes lowest point: Lammefjord Denmark -7 m; Zuidplaspolder Netherlands -7 m
Extremes highest point: Mont Blanc 4,807 m; note - situated on the border between France and Italy
Natural resources: iron ore natural gas petroleum coal copper lead zinc bauxite uranium potash salt hydropower arable land: timber fish
Land use
Land use
Arable land: NA
Permanent crops: NA
Other: NA
Irrigated land: 168,050 km² (2003 est.)
Major rivers
Major watersheds area km²
Total water withdrawal
Total renewable water resources
Natural hazards: flooding along coasts; avalanches in mountainous area; earthquakes in the south; volcanic eruptions in Italy; periodic droughts in Spain; ice floes in the Baltic
Geography
European Union - People 2010
top of pagePopulation: 492,387,344 (July 2010 est.)
Growth rate: 0.098 % (2010 est.)
Below poverty line: note - see individual country entries of member states
Nationality
Ethnic groups
Languages: Bulgarian Czech Danish Dutch English Estonian Finnish French Gaelic German Greek Hungarian Italian Latvian Lithuanian Maltese Polish Portuguese Romanian Slovak Slovene Spanish Swedish
Note: only official languages are listed; German the major language of Germany Austria and Switzerland is the most widely spoken mother tongue - over 19% of the EU population; English is the most widely spoken language - about 49% of the EU population is conversant with it (2007)
Religions: Roman Catholic Protestant Orthodox Muslim Jewish
Demographic profile
Age structure
Age structure
0-14 years: 15.44%
15-64 years: 67.23% (male 166,412,403/female 164,295,636)
65 years and over: 17.33% (male 35,376,333/female 49,853,361) (2009 est.)
Dependency ratios
Median age: note - see individual country entries of member states (2009 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.098 % (2010 est.)
Birth rate: 9.83 births/1000 population (2010 est.)
Death rate: 10.33 deaths/1000 population (July 2010 est.)
Net migration rate: 1.48 migrant(s)/1000 population (2010 est.)
Population distribution
Urbanization
Major urban areas
Environment
Current issues: NA
International agreements party to: Air Pollution Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants Air Pollution-Sulphur 94 Antarctic-Marine Living Resources Biodiversity Climate Change Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol Desertification Hazardous Wastes Law of the Sea Ozone Layer Protection Tropical Timber 83 Tropical Timber 94
International agreements signed but not ratified: Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds
Air pollutants
Sex ratio
At birth: 1.06 male/female
Under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female
Total population: 0.92 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Mothers mean age at first birth
Maternal mortality ratio
Infant mortality rate
Total: 5.61 deaths/1000 live births
Rank: 181
Male: 6.26 deaths/1000 live births
Female: 4.93 deaths/1000 live births (2010 est.)
Life expectancy at birth
Total population: 78.82 years
Rank: 41
Male: 75.7 years
Female: 82.13 years (2010 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.51 children born/woman (2010 est.)
Contraceptive prevalence rate
Drinking water source
Current health expenditure
Physicians density
Hospital bed density
Sanitation facility access
Hiv/Aids
Adult prevalence rate: note - see individual country entries of member states
People living with hivaids: note - see individual country entries of member states
Deaths: note - see individual country entries of member states
Major infectious diseases
Obesity adult prevalence rate
Alcohol consumption
Tobacco use
Children under the age of 5 years underweight
Education expenditures
Literacy
School life expectancy primary to tertiary education
Youth unemployment
European Union - Government 2010
top of pageCountry name
Government type
Capital
Name: Brussels Strasbourg (France) Luxembourg
Geographic coordinates: 50 50 N 4 20 E
Time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington DC during Standard Time)
Daylight saving time: +1hr begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
Note: the Council of the European Union meets in Brussels Belgium; the European Parliament meets in Brussels and Strasbourg France; the Court of Justice of the European Communities meets in Luxembourg
Administrative divisions
Dependent areas
Independence: 7 February 1992 (Maastricht Treaty signed establishing the EU); 1 November 1993 (Maastricht Treaty entered into force)
National holiday: Europe Day 9 May (1950); note - a Union-wide holiday the day that Robert SCHUMAN proposed the creation of the European Coal and Steel Community to achieve an organized Europe
Constitution: none
Note: based on a series of treaties: the Treaty of Paris which set up the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) in 1951; the Treaties of Rome which set up the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) in 1957; the Single European Act in 1986; the Treaty on European Union (Maastricht) in 1992; the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1997; and the Treaty of Nice in 2003; note - a new draft Constitutional Treaty signed on 29 October 2004 in Rome gave member states two years for ratification either by parliamentary vote or national referendum before it was scheduled to take effect on 1 November 2006; defeat in French and Dutch referenda in May-June 2005 dealt a severe setback to the ratification process; in June 2007 the European Council agreed on a clear and concise mandate for an Intergovernmental Conference to form a political agreement and put it into legal form; this agreement known as the Reform Treaty would have served as a constitution and was presented to the European Council in October 2007 for individual country ratification; it was rejected by Irish voters in June 2008 again stalling the ratification process; the Reform Treaty more recently known as the Treaty of Lisbon was again circulated for ratification and by November 2009 was approved by all 27 countries; it came into effect on 1 December 2009
Legal system: comparable to the legal systems of member states; first supranational law system
International law organization participation
Citizenship
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch
Chief of union: President of the European Commission Jose Manuel BARROSO
Cabinet: European Commission (composed of 27 members one from each member country; each commissioner responsible for one or more policy areas)
Elections: the president of the European Commission designated by member governments and confirmed by the European Parliament; working from member state recommendations the Commission president then assembles a 'college' of Commission members; the European Parliament confirms the entire Commission for a five-year term; the next confirmation process will likely be held in January 2015
Note: the European Council brings together heads of state and government and the president of the European Commission and meets at least four times a year; its aim is to provide the impetus for the major political issues relating to European integration and to issue general policy guidelines; leaders of the EU member states appointed then Belgian Prime Minister Herman VAN ROMPUY to be the first full-time president of the European Council in November 2009; he took office on 1 December 2009 and will serve a two-and-one-half-year term renewable once; his core responsibilities include chairing the four summits each year and providing continuity beyond the rotating six-month presidencies of the Council of the EU
Legislative branch: two legislative bodies consisting of the Council of the European Union (27 member-state ministers having 345 votes; the number of votes is roughly proportional to member-states' population) and the European Parliament (736 seats; seats allocated among member states in proportion to population; members elected by direct universal suffrage for a five-year term); note - the Council is the main decision-making body of the EU; leaders of the EU member states appointed UK Baroness Catherine Ashton to be the first High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy; Ashton took office on 1 December 2009; her concurrent appointment as Vice President of the European Commission - both of which are subject to confirmation by the European Parliament - endows her position with the policymaking influence of the Council of the EU and the budgetary influence of the European Commission
Elections: last held on 4-7 June 2009 (next to be held in June 2014)
Election results: percent of vote - EPP 36% S&D 25% ALDE 11.4% Greens/EFA 7.5% ECR 7.3% GUE/NGL 4.8% EFD 4.3% independents 3.7%; seats by party - EPP 265 S&D 184 ALDE 84 Greens/EFA 55 ECR 54 GUE/NGL 35 EFD 32 independents 27
Judicial branch: Court of Justice of the European Communities (ensures that the treaties are interpreted and applied uniformly throughout the EU; resolve constitutional issues among the EU institutions) - 27 justices (one from each member state) appointed for a six-year term; note - for the sake of efficiency the court can sit with 13 justices known as the 'Grand Chamber'; Court of First Instance - 27 justices appointed for a six-year term
Political parties and leaders: Confederal Group of the European United Left-Nordic Green Left or GUE/NGL [Lothar BISKY]; Europe of Freedom and Democracy Group or EFD [Nigel FARAGE and Francesco SPERONI]; European Conservatives and Reformists Group or ECR [Michael KAMINSKI]; Group of Greens/European Free Alliance or Greens/EFA [Rebecca HARMS and Daniel COHN-BENDIT]; Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe or ALDE [Guy VERHOFSTADT]; Group of the European People's Party or EPP [Joseph DAUL]; Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats in the European Parliament or S&D [Martin SCHULZ]
International organization participation
European union: ARF ASEAN (dialogue member) FAO G-8 G-20 IDA OAS (observer) PIF (partner) SAARC (observer) UN (observer) WTO
European commission: Australian Group CBSS CERN EBRD FATF G-10 IEA LAIA WTO ZC (observer)
European central bank: BIS
European investment bank: EBRD
Diplomatic representation
In the us chief of mission: Ambassador Joao P. Castanheira do VALE DE ALMEIDA
In the us chancery: 2,300 M Street NW Washington DC 20,037
In the us telephone: [1] (202) 862-9,500
In the us fax: [1] (202) 429-1766
From the us chief of mission: Ambassador ; Charge d'Affaires Christopher MURRAY
From the us embassy: 13 Zinnerstraat/Rue Zinner B-1000 Brussels
From the us mailing address: same as above
From the us telephone: [32] (2) 508-2,111
From the us fax: [32] (2) 508-2,063
Flag description: a blue field with 12 five-pointed gold stars arranged in a circle in the center; blue represents the sky of the Western world the stars are the peoples of Europe in a circle a symbol of unity; the number of stars is fixed
National symbols
National anthem
Name: 'Ode to Joy''
Lyricsmusic: none/Ludwig VON BEETHOVEN arranged by Herbert VON KARAJAN
Note: adopted 1972 not in use until 1986; according to the European Union the song is meant to represent all of Europe rather than just the organization; the song also serves as the anthem for the Council of Europe
National heritage
European Union - Economy 2010
top of pageEconomy overview: Internally the EU has abolished trade barriers adopted a common currency and is striving toward convergence of living standards. Internationally the EU aims to bolster Europe's trade position and its political and economic power. Because of the great differences in per capita income among member states (from $7,000 to $78,000) and in national attitudes toward issues like inflation debt and foreign trade the EU faces difficulties in devising and enforcing common policies. In the wake of the global economic crisis the European Commission projected that the EU's economy would shrink by 4% in 2009 and 0.1% in 2010. The EU has recovered from the crisis faster than expected however and the Commission estimates 2010 growth at 1.8%. Significant risks to growth nevertheless remain including high official debts and deficits aging populations over-regulation of non-financial businesses and doubts about the sustainability of European Economic and Monetary Union (EMU). In June 2010 prompted by the Greek financial crisis the EU and the IMF set up a $1 trillion bailout fund to rescue any EMU member in danger of default but it has not calmed market jitters that have diminished the value of the euro. Eleven established EU member states introduced the euro as their common currency on 1 January 1999 (Greece did so two years later) but the UK and Denmark have 'opt-outs' that allow them to keep their national currencies and Sweden has not taken the steps needed to participate. Between 2004 and 2007 the EU admitted 12 countries that are in general less advanced economically than the other 15. Of the 12 most recent member states only Slovenia (1 January 2007) Cyprus and Malta (1 January 2008) Slovakia (1 January 2009) and Estonia (1 January 2011) have adopted the euro; the remaining states other than the UK and Denmark are legally required to adopt the currency upon meeting EU's fiscal and monetary convergence criteria.
Real gdp purchasing power parity:
$14.64 trillion (2009 est.)
$15.27 trillion (2008 est.)
$15.27 trillion (2008 est.)
Rank: 1
Note: data are in 2010 US dollars
Real gdp growth rate:
-4% (2009 est.)
0.6% (2008 est.)
0.6% (2008 est.)
Rank: 160
Real gdp per capita:
$32,400 (2009 est.)
$33,900 (2008 est.)
$33,900 (2008 est.)
Rank: 42
Note: data are in 2010 US dollars
Gross national saving
Gdp composition by sector of origin
Gdp composition by end use
Gdp composition by sector of origin
Agriculture: 1.8%
Industry: 25.2%
Services: 72.9% (2010 est.)
Agriculture products: wheat barley oilseeds sugar beets wine grapes; dairy products cattle sheep pigs poultry; fish
Industries: among the world's largest and most technologically advanced the EU industrial base includes: ferrous and non-ferrous metal production and processing metal products petroleum coal cement chemicals pharmaceuticals aerospace rail transportation equipment passenger and commercial vehicles construction equipment industrial equipment shipbuilding electrical power equipment machine tools and automated manufacturing systems electronics and telecommunications equipment fishing food and beverage processing furniture paper textiles tourism
Industrial production growth rate: 3.8% (2010 est.)
Rank: 90
Labor force: 225.2 million (2010 est.)
Rank: 3
By occupation agriculture: 5.6%
By occupation industry: 27.7%
By occupation services: 66.7% (2007 est.)
Labor force
Unemployment rate: 9% (2009 est.)
Rank: 104
Youth unemployment
Population below poverty line: note - see individual country entries of member states
Gini index
Household income or consumption by percentage share
Lowest 10: 2.9%
Highest 10: 25.6% (2002 est.)
Distribution of family income gini index: 31.2 (1996 est.)
Rank: 106
Budget
Taxes and other revenues
Public debt
Revenue
Fiscal year
Inflation rate consumer prices: 1.8% (2009 est.)
Rank: 47
Central bank discount rate: 3% (31 December 2008)
Rank: 121
Note: this is the European Central Bank's rate on the marginal lending facility which offers overnight credit to banks in the euro area
Commercial bank prime lending rate: 8.58% (31 December 2008 est.)
Rank: 110
Stock of narrow money: $5.649 trillion (31 December 2007)
Rank: 2
Note: this is the quantity of money M1 for the euro area converted into US dollars at the exchange rate for the date indicated; it excludes the stock of money carried by non-euro-area members of the European Union
Stock of broad money: $10.83 trillion (31 December 2007 est.)
Rank: 4
Note: this is the quantity of quasi money M2-M1 for the euro area converted into US dollars at the exchange rate for the date indicated; it excludes the stock of quasi money carried by non-euro-area members of the European Union
Stock of domestic credit: $21.24 trillion (31 December 2008 est.)
Rank: 2
Note: this figure refers to the euro area only; it excludes credit data for non-euro-area members of the EU
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$7.564 trillion (31 December 2008)
$15.57 trillion (31 December 2007 est.)
$15.57 trillion (31 December 2007 est.)
Rank: 2
Current account balance:
$NA (2009)
$51.4 billion (2009 est.)
$51.4 billion (2009 est.)
Exports: $1.33 trillion (2005)
Rank: 1
Note: external exports excluding intra-EU trade
Commodities: machinery motor vehicles aircraft plastics pharmaceuticals and other chemicals fuels iron and steel nonferrous metals wood pulp and paper products textiles meat dairy products fish alcoholic beverages.
Imports: $1.466 trillion (2005)
Rank: 2
Note: external imports excluding intra-EU trade
Commodities: machinery vehicles aircraft plastics crude oil chemicals textiles metals foodstuffs clothing
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold: $NA
Debt external
Rank: 2: $13.72 trillion (30 June 2010); This is the external debt for the euro area only; it excludes the external debt of the non-euro-area members of the EU
Stock of direct foreign investment at home: $NA
Stock of direct foreign investment abroad
Exchange rates: euros per US dollar - 0.7715 (2010) 0.7338 (2009) 0.6827 (2008) 0.7345 (2007) 0.7964 (2006)
European Union - Energy 2010
top of pageElectricity
Production: 3.08 trillion kWh (2007 est.)
Production rank: 3
Consumption: 2.906 trillion kWh (2007 est.)
Consumption rank: 3
Exports: NA kWh
Imports: NA kWh
Coal
Petroleum
Crude oil
Refined petroleum
Natural gas
Production: 181.6 billion m³ (2009 est.)
Production rank: 4
Consumption: 489.4 billion m³ (2009 est.)
Consumption rank: 2
Exports: NA m³
Imports: NA m³
Proven reserves: 2.242 trillion m³ (1 January 2010 est.)
Proven reserves rank: 18
Carbon dioxide emissions
Energy consumption per capita
European Union - Communication 2010
top of pageTelephones
Main lines in use: 238 million (2005)
Mobile cellular: 466 million (2005)
Telephone system: note - see individual country entries of member states
Broadcast media
Internet
Country code: .eu; note - see country entries of member states for individual country codes
Hosts: 140,277; note - this sum reflects the number of internet hosts assigned the .eu internet country code (2010)
Users: 247 million (2006)
Broadband fixed subscriptions
European Union - Military 2010
top of pageMilitary expenditures
Military and security forces
Military service age and obligation
Space program
Terrorist groups
European Union - Transportation 2010
top of pageNational air transport system
Civil aircraft registration country code prefix
Airports: 3,383 (2010)
With paved runways total: 1992
With paved runways over 3047 m: 116
With paved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 340
With paved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 546
With paved runways 914 to 1523 m: 422
With paved runways under 914 m: 568 (2010)
With unpaved runways total: 1391
With unpaved runways over 3047 m: 2
With unpaved runways 2438 to 3047 m: 1
With unpaved runways 15-24 to 2437 m: 22
With unpaved runways 914 to 1523 m: 254
With unpaved runways under 914 m: 1112 (2010)
Heliports: 99 (2010)
Pipelines
Railways
Total: 229,450 km
Roadways
Total: 5,919,704 km
Waterways: 52,332 km (2006)
Merchant marine
Ports and terminals: Antwerp (Belgium) Barcelona (Spain) Braila (Romania) Bremen (Germany) Burgas (Bulgaria) Constanta (Romania) Copenhagen (Denmark) Galati (Romania) Gdansk (Poland) Hamburg (Germany) Helsinki (Finland) Las Palmas (Canary Islands Spain) Le Havre (France) Lisbon (Portugal) London (UK) Marseille (France) Naples (Italy) Peiraiefs or Piraeus (Greece) Riga (Latvia) Rotterdam (Netherlands) Stockholm (Sweden) Talinn (Estonia) Tulcea (Romania) Varna (Bulgaria)
European Union - Transnational issues 2010
top of pageDisputes international: as a political union the EU has no border disputes with neighboring countries but Estonia has no land boundary agreements with Russia Slovenia disputes its land and maritime boundaries with Croatia and Spain has territorial and maritime disputes with Morocco and with the UK over Gibraltar; the EU has set up a Schengen area - consisting of 22 EU member states that have signed the convention implementing the Schengen agreements or 'acquis' (1985 and 1990) on the free movement of persons and the harmonization of border controls in Europe; these agreements became incorporated into EU law with the implementation of the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam on 1 May 1999; in addition non-EU states Iceland and Norway (as part of the Nordic Union) have been included in the Schengen area since 1996 (full members in 2001) and Switzerland since 2008 bringing the total current membership to 25; the UK (since 2000) and Ireland (since 2002) take part in only some aspects of the Schengen area especially with respect to police and criminal matters; nine of the 12 new member states that joined the EU since 2004 joined Schengen on 21 December 2007; of the three remaining EU states Cyprus is expected to join by 2009 while Romania and Bulgaria continue to enhance their border security systems
Refugees and internally displaced persons
Illicit drugs
