The European Union (EU) is a unique, supranational economic and political union between 27 European countries. (European Commission statement; Wikipedia, European Union)

The EU has often been described as a sui generis political entity (without precedent or comparison) combining the characteristics of both a federation and a confederation.

The European Union is the final result of the supranational political evolution of concurrent international organizations and unions including that of the Benelux Customs Union and later the Benelux Economic Union, the Western Union, the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) and the European Economic Community (EEC).