Politics of Europe
There are few conflicts within Europe, although there remain problems in the Western Balkans, the Caucasus, Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom and the Basque Country in Spain.
[5] According to 2007 data published in 2008 by Freedom House, the countries of Europe that cannot be classified liberal electoral democracies are Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia, Kazakhstan and Russia.
[6] European states are members of a large number of international organizations, mainly economical, although several are political, or both.
The EU, considered as a unit, has the second largest economy in the world with a nominal GDP of 14.9 trillion USD in 2020.
[9] The Council of Europe brings together 46 European nations - the entire continent with the exception of Russia, which was expelled in 2022 following its invasion of Ukraine, and Belarus.
[10] Founded in 1949, it is the oldest of the European organizations, embodying post-war hopes for peaceful co-operation, and is focused on the three statutory aims of promoting human rights, democracy and the rule of law.
[11] The Council of Europe is regarded as a classic intergovernmental organization, with a parliamentary arm, and has none of the supranational powers of the EU – thus it could be compared to a regional version of the United Nations.
The Community of Democratic Choice (CDC) was formed in December 2005 at the primary instigation of Ukraine and Georgia, and composed of six Post-Soviet states (Ukraine, Georgia, Moldova, and the three Baltic Assembly members of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania) and three other countries of Eastern and Central Europe (Slovenia, Romania and North Macedonia).
The treaty aiming for the establishment of the EEU was signed on 29 May 2014 by the leaders of Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia, and came into force on 1 January 2015.
[15] Treaties aiming for Armenia's and Kyrgyzstan's accession to the Eurasian Economic Union were signed on 9 October 2014 and 23 December respectively.
[16] Although Kyrgyzstan's accession treaty did not come into force until May 2015, provided it has been ratified,[17] it will participate in the EEU from the day of its establishment as an acceding state.
The most significant issue for the CIS is the establishment of a full-fledged free trade zone and economic union between the member states, launched in 2005.
The group was created as a way of countering the influence of Russia in the area, and it has received backing and encouragement from the United States .
[28] Though at one point it was generally considered to have stagnated, recent developments have caused speculation on the possible revival of the organization.
Two of Belgium's political parties, the Vlaams Belang and New-Flemish Alliance, want Flanders, the northern part of the country, to become independent.
The president is elected for a single seven-year term by the Italian Parliament and regional voters in joint session.
There are senators for life, appointed by the president "for outstanding patriotic merits in the social, scientific, artistic or literary field".
Another difference is that the political responsibility for intelligence is with the prime minister, who has exclusive power to coordinate intelligence policies, determine financial resources, strengthen cybersecurity, apply and protect State secrets, and authorise agents to carry out operations, in Italy or abroad.
The centre-right coalition, which included Giorgia Meloni's Brothers of Italy, Matteo Salvini's League, Silvio Berlusconi's Forza Italia, and Maurizio Lupi's Us Moderates, won most seats in parliament.
The rest were taken by the centre-left coalition, which included the Democratic Party, the Greens and Left Alliance, Aosta Valley, More Europe, Civic Commitment, the Five Star Movement, Action – Italia Viva, South Tyrolean People's Party, South calls North, and the Associative Movement of Italians Abroad.
The eastern Moldovan region of Transnistria, which has a large ethnic Russian and Ukrainian population,[38] has declared independence from Moldova on 2 September 1990 and is a member of the Community for Democracy and Rights of Nations.
Before the Treaty of Trianon after World War I, Transylvania belonged to Austria-Hungary, and it contains minorities of ethnic Hungarians who desire regional autonomy in the country.
The most notable of these are Chechnya, Dagestan and Ingushetia, which have well supported guerrilla groups involved in open conflict with the Russian authorities.
The eastern, majority Russophone part of the country is divided, and there are calls from some groups for the area to leave Ukraine and join Russia.
There have, however, been revived calls for independence since the 2016 EU referendum, which saw both Scotland and Northern Ireland vote to Remain.
