Encyclopedia > General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union
The General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union, better known as Council Secretariat, assists the Council of the European Union and the EU Presidency. This institution is currently headed by Secretary-General Javier Solana, who is at the same time the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy (double-hatting). Pierre de Boissieu is currently the Deputy Secretary-General of the Council. The Western European Union, Schengen Agreement, and European Political Cooperation Secretariats have in recent years been integration into the Council Secretariat. The Justus Lipsius building, the headquarter of the EU Council in Brussels The Council of the European Union (German: Rat der Europäischen Union, French: Le Conseil de lUnion européenne), is a governing body that forms, along with the European Parliament, the legislative arm of the European Union...
The Presidency of the Council of the European Union refers to the responsibility of presiding over all aspects of the Council of the European Union, when exercised collectively by a government, on a pre-established rota of the member states, of the European Union. ...
Javier Solana Francisco Javier Solana Madariaga (born July 14, 1942 in Madrid, Spain) is the High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP) and the Secretary-General of both the Council of the European Union (EU) and the Western European Union (WEU). ...
The Common Foreign and Security Policy or CFSP was established as the second of the three pillars of the European Union in the Maastricht treaty of 1992, and further defined and broadened in the Amsterdam Treaty of 1997. ...
Membership 10 member states 6 associate member states 5 observer countries 7 associate partner countries Formation - Signed Treaty of Brussels - 17 March 1948 The Western European Union (WEU) is a partially dormant European defence and security organization, established on the basis of the Treaty of Brussels of 1948 with the...
Implementing countries Members (not yet implemented) Expressed interest in joining A monument to the Agreement in Schengen A typical Schengen border crossing without any border control post, just the common EU-state sign welcoming the visitor, as here between Germany and Austria The 1985 Schengen Agreement is an agreement among...
The European political cooperation (EPC) was introduced informally in 1970 in response to the Davignon report and was formalised by the Single European Act with effect from 1987. ...
The tasks of the Council Secretariat are threefold (Christiansen 2002):
- It "shall be closely and continually involved in organising, coordinating andensuring the coherence of the Council's work and implementation of its annual programme" [1]. This involves 'traditional tasks', such as arranging rooms and translation, and making the minutes, but the Council Secretariat has also, due to its experience and continuity, gained a role as legal adviser and political counsellor to the EU Presidency.
- The Council Secretariat also plays an important role in the EU's intergovernmental conferences (IGC), because it provides the IGC Secretariat. Apart from legal advice, it also tries to be an honest broker among member states. Close observer have argued that the Council Secretariat, together with the Presidency, is the most important actor in the IGC (Gray & Stubb 2001).
- The Council Secretariat plays an particularly important role when it comes to the Common Foreign and Security Policy and the European Security and Defence Policy. Because the member states were afraid of losing sovereignty to the supranational European Commission, they have instead delegated authority to the Council Secretariat in this policy area. Within the Secretariat's directorates there are a substantial number of people working on foreign policy issues and the Secretariat is also home to the European Union Military Staff. Since January 2007 the Council Secretariat even has its own independent Operation Centre. [2]
The Common Foreign and Security Policy, or CFSP, was established as the second of the three pillars of the European Union in the Maastricht treaty of 1992, and further defined and broadened in the Amsterdam Treaty of 1997. ...
The European Security and Defence Policy or ESDP is a major element of the Common Foreign and Security Policy pillar of the European Union (EU). ...
The Commission seat in Brussels The European Commission (formally the Commission of the European Communities) is the executive body of the European Union. ...
More on the Council of the European Union; General Secretariat of the Council of the European Union; Private office; Departments attached to the Secretary-General/High Representative; See also Military of the European Union External links http://www. ...
Links - Council website: http://www.consilium.europa.eu
- Main CFSP bodies in the Council Secretariat: http://www.diplomatie.gouv.fr
Notes - ^ Council Decision of 22 March 2004 adopting the Council's Rules of Procedure
- ^ See Council website: http://www.consilium.europa.eu
References and further reading - Beach, D. (2004), ‘The unseen hand in treaty reform negotiations: the role and influence of the Council Secretariat’, Journal of European Public Policy, 11(3), pp. 408-439.
- Christiansen, T. (2002a), ‘Out of the Shadows: The General Secretariat of the Council of Ministers’, Journal of Legislative Studies, 8(4), pp. 80-97.
- Duke, S. & Vanhoonacker, S. (2006), ‘Administrative governance in the CFSP: development and practice’, European Foreign Affairs Review, 11(2), pp. 163-182.
- Gray, M. & Stubb, A. (2001), ‘Keynote article: The Treaty of Nice – Negotiating a Poisoned Chalice?’, Journal of Common Market Studies, 39 Annual Review, pp. 5-23.
- Hayes-Renshaw, F. & Wallace, H. (2006), The Council of Ministers, London: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Westlake, M. & Galloway, D. (2004), The Council of the European Union, London: John Harper.
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