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Article: The EU institutions. (European Union)(The State of the Union)
- Article from:
- Europe
- Article date:
- November 1, 1996
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 1996 Delegation of the European Commission. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Europe is a strange superpower. Despite its economic strength, it often comes across as a political dwarf, failing to punch its weight on the world stage.
This at least is the conventional criticism of the European Union. It reflects a widely held view that the EU as an international actor is no more than the sum of its parts; but a closer look at the state of the Union reveals a rather different story.
Measured in terms of trade, aid, investment, and lending capacity, the EU is a world leader alongside the US and Japan. The recent decision by the World Bank to set up an office in Brussels to complement operations in London and Paris points to an increasing ...