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The European Union and Human Rights

Satisfactory Essays

The European Union and Human Rights With 27 member states and a list of others still seeking accession, the European Union is the most powerful economic and political alliance in Europe as well as one of the determinant global entities in the era of globalization. Since its inception in 1993, an evolution on various other alliances dating to the years after World War II reconstruction, the European Union has worked to bring the issue of Human Rights preservation front and center. Indeed, as part and parcel of its charter, the EU has made human rights improvements a serious priority not just in its member states but in those which aspire to eventual membership. This points to what is most assuredly the strongest indicator of the EU's commitment to the imperatives classified as inalienable human rights. That is, the standards by which members are admitted into the European Union are highly stringent and apply significant reference to the centrality of human rights in qualifying for such admission. According to Europa (2012), "Embedded in the Treaty on European Union, they have been reinforced by the Charter of Fundamental Rights. Countries seeking to join the EU must respect human rights, and so must countries which have concluded trade and other agreements with it." (Europa, p. 1) This points to the most powerful legal instrument that the EU has at its disposal. That is, the process for accession into the Union is highly impacted by the compliance of the applicant

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