International Organizations

The European Union is an international organization. Its goal is to promote and expand cooperation among its members in the fields of economy, trade, social issues, foreign policy, security, and defense. It has its headquarters in Brussels, Belgium. Its history dates back to 1951, to the Paris Treaty which established the European Coal and Steel Community (Germany, France, Italy, The Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg). The Rome Treaties of 1958 transformed the ECSC and Euroatom into the European Economic Community. The Maastrich Treaty of 1992 transformed the EEC into the European Union. In 2000, the Treaty of Nice prepared institutions for the enlarged Union. In 2002, a single currency for EU members was accepted and the Economic and Monetary Union was created. Europe Day is celebrated on May 9th. The European flag is blue with a circle of 12 golden stars. The anthem is Beethoven´s ninth symphony – the Ode to Joy. The first member states were Germany, France, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, the UK, Austria, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Finland, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. On May 1st, 2004, 10 more states were accepted: Malta, Cyprus, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Latvia, Hungary, Poland, Slovenia, Lithuania, and Estonia. There is now talk about a two speed Europe. Some EU Institutions are the Commission of the EU with its headquarters in Brussels, the EU Parliament (Strasbourg), and the EU Council. The European Parliament has 24 members from the Czech Republic and 732 altogether.

Another international organization is the World Health Organization (WHO), which was established in 1948. Its headquarters are in Geneva. Its purpose is to spread information about diseases, help to come out with new medical techniques and to provide the best possible health system for all. It is a subdivision of the United Nations.

The World Trade Organization (WTO) controls trade in all of its member states. Apart from controlling trade and services, it also takes care of copy rights. It has 146 members and it is based in Geneva. It was born from the organization known as GATT.

Probably the most prominent international organization is the United Nations. The UN was founded in 1945 in San Francisco. Today it is based in New York City on international property. It got its name from President Roosevelt. It promotes world peace and cooperation as well as caring about the environment and poverty. It has 191 members from all over the world. The idea for the UN came from Immanuel Kant – joined nations would be able to fight against a state acting aggressively.




Přidal: sheeni 20. 5. 2011
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