The European Treaties -in short.

The Treaty establishing European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) - signed in Paris on 18 April 1951 by France, Germany, Italy and the Benelux countries and entered into force on 23 July 1952. The main objective was to create a common market for coal and steel products. It expired on 23 July 2002.

The Treaty establishing the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC, better known as Euratom) - signed in Rome on 25 March 1957 by France, Germany, Italy and the Benelux countries; came into force on 1 January 1958. Main objectives: to create a common market for nuclear materials and equipment, establish common nuclear legislation, introduce a common system for supplies of fissile materials and establish a system for supervising the peaceful use of nuclear energy and common standards for nuclear safety and for the health and safety protection of the population and workers against ionising radiation. The EAEC Treaty is still in force

The Treaty establishing the the European Economic Community (EEC) - signed at the same time as the Euratom Treaty, on 25 March 1957, by France, Germany, Italy and the Benelux countries and brought into force on 1 January 1958. Main objective- the creation of a common market between the Member States, involving:
- the achievement of a customs union
- implementation, of four fundamental freedoms:
1. freedom of movement of goods,
2. freedom of movement of workers,
3. freedom of establishment and providing services
4. freedom of capital movements
Notes:
*The EEC and EAEC treaties are sometimes referred to as the “Treaties of Rome”,
*The Single European Act, which came into force on 1 July 1987, was supplementing the EEC Treaty
*The basic Treaties were also amended relating to the functioning of the institutions, by the Treaty concerning the Accession to the European Economic Community of Denmark , Ireland, the United Kingdom and Norway, signed in Brussels on 22 January 1972 and brought into force on 1 January 1973 (in the end, Norway had ruled out its accession).
*The Member States amended the Treaties in parallel with the creation of the Community’s own resources, in order to increase the European Parliament’s budgetary powers: the first Budget Treaty - signed on 22 April 1970 and entered into force on 1 January 1971, which increased the European Parliament’s budgetary powers and the second Budget Treaty, which governs the Community finances, signed on 22 July 1975 and entered into force on 1 June 1977.
* The Treaties establishing the Communities were again amended relating to the functioning of the institution s, by the Treaty concerning the Acccesion of Greece to the EEC and to the Euratom, signed in Athens on 28 May 1979.

The Treaty of Maastricht - was signed on 7 February 1992; it was in fact made up of two separate but interrelated Treaties:
- the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) ;
- the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC)
These two Treaties established the three pillars:
1. the main pillar, which is the European Community and where the common work of the participants is regulated by the TEC and where the Community method prevails;
2. the pillar of justice and home affairs;
3. the pillar of the common foreign and security policy (CFSP)

The Treaty of Amsterdam - signed on 17 June 1997 at Amsterdam, did not bring fundamental changes to the integration process, but it made some progress in several policy areas, such as: the transfer of policies related to the free movement of persons under the EC authority (entailing the Community decision-making method), extension of the co-decision procedure, placeing the employment and social protection in the center of the Union, strengthening the common foreign and security policy by making the European Council responsible for defining common strategies etc.

The Treaty of Nice – signed on 26 February 2001. The main objective was to assure that the institutions of the European Community/Union will function ok with the representatives of ten new Member States (the 2004 wave of accession). Treaty of Nice (which is actually the one in force) revised the Treaty of Amsterdam concerning mainly four institutional matters: the replacement of unanimity by qualified majority in decision-making procedures, the enhanced cooperation of some Member States, the weighting of votes in the Council and the size and the composition of the Commission.

The Treaty of Lisbon (not yet ratified by all Member States)
The European Council of Laeken (14-15 December 2001) decided to convene a Convention on the future of Europe, with the former President of the French Republic, Mr. Giscard d’Estaing as chairman. The Convention brought together representatives of the governments and national parliaments of the Member States as well as representatives of all the European institutions. It is the Convention which decided to call the treaty that it prepared “Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe”, but the Constitutional Treaty was not ratified, so it was transformed into one less radical: the Reform Treaty, i.e, The Treaty of Lisbon, signed by the heads of State or government of the 27 Member States, on 13 December 2007.
The Treaty of Lisbon maintained all the important elements of the former Constitutional Treaty, setting aside several secondary or emblematic elements, mostly by the request of the eurosceptics:
- the title of “Constitution” - that for some people concealed the transformation of the EU into a Super-State
- the references to the symbols of unification: the flag with the twelve stars, the ode to joy of Beethoven (that has already been established as the anthem of Europe); 9 May as the day of Europe in commemoration of the declaration of R. Schuman etc.
- the ”regulations” and ”directives” will not be replaced by ”European laws” and ”European framework laws”
- The Charter of Fundamental Rights is not incorporated into the Treaty of Lisbon, but its provisions are given a binding legal force (excepting UK and Poland) etc.
There will still be two Treaties having the same rank: the Treaty on the European Union (TEU) and the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), which will replace the Treaty establishing the European Community (TEC)
The European Union will have a single legal personality under which it will negotiate, sign and implement all its external commitments, policies and activities, including trade, aid to development, representation in third countries and in international organisations and foreign and security policy.
The reforms of the European institutions proposed by the Treaty of Lisbon are actually the same as the ones that were proposed by the Constitutional Treaty.
As the most heads of the Member States declared, since the Lisbon Treaty just amends the existing Treaties and has no constitutional effects, it can be ratified by the assent of national parliaments, this way avoiding the referendums.