!!!Europäische Union, EU

European Union (EU), until 1993 European Community (EC), economic and 
political union of fifteen European states with headquarters in 
Brussels (Belgium). Members (1999): Austria, Belgium, Denmark, 
Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, 
Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden, Spain and United Kingdom.

\\
Austria applied for full membership on July 17, 1989; on 
February 1, 1993 accession negotiations started in Brussels with 
Austria, Finland, Norway and Sweden. Austria's negotiation position 
focused on  neutrality,  agriculture, real estate transactions and  
transit traffic. After the end of negotiations a plebiscite in Austria 
on June 12, 1994 resulted in a 66% vote in favour of accession, 
which was effected on January 1, 1995. Austria also joined the  
Schengen Agreement which had been signed by Belgium, France, Germany, 
Luxembourg and the Netherlands in 1985 and which was later joined by 
Italy, Spain, Portugal and Greece. This meant the de facto abolition 
of border controls between almost all these countries. The Treaty of  
Amsterdam of 1998 provides for closer cooperation amongst all 15 EU 
members in the areas of justice, foreign policy and security policy. 
From July to December 1998 Austria held the Presidency of the Council 
of Ministers of the European Union for the first time. On January 1, 
1999, as a member of the Economic and Monetary Union, Austria 
introduced the  Euro as official currency.

!Literature
M. Gehler and R. Steininger, Oesterreich und die 
europaeische Integration 1945-93, 1993; H. Neisser, Das politische 
System der EG, 1993; F. Cede and C. Thun-Hohenstein, Europarecht - 
kurz gefasst, 1995.


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