The Maastricht Treaty, officially known as the Treaty on European Union, was signed on 7 February 1992, in Maastricht, in the Netherlands, by the then-twelve Members of the European Communities. It entered into force on 1 November 1993, after being ratified by all Members.
The Maastricht Treaty formally established the European Union, transforming the European Economic Community into a more cohesive and comprehensive union. It also introduced EU citizenship.

The Maastricht Treaty and how it has evolved

At a glance: the European elections are now under way. The Netherlands is kicking off the voting, with the polls there opening today, while Estonian citizens can already cast their vote online.

News in Brief – 06/06/2024 - English

At a glance: the European elections will kick off tomorrow. The Netherlands will be the first country to open its polls and Italy will be the last to close them. Today is World Environment Day.

News in Brief – 05/06/2024 - English

At a glance: the European elections kick off on Thursday; the first country to open the polling stations will be the Netherlands and the last to close them, Italy.

News in Brief – 04/06/2024 - English

On the fifth of June, we celebrate World Environment Day. Over the past five decades, that day has grown to be one of the largest global platforms for environmental outreach. 2023 marks the 50th anniversary of World Environment Day. Tens of millions of people take part, along with governments, companies, cities and community organisations. This year the host is Côte d'Ivoire in partnership with the Netherlands, and they will focus on solutions to counter plastic pollution with the campaign #BeatPlasticPollution.

World Environment Day 2023 - English

We are proud to invite you to listen to a Transpoesie literary event. In this podcast, you will hear Slovenian poet, essayist, composer, and recipient of the title Dame of Poetry Nina Dragičević performing in the company of poets Pelumi Adejumo (Netherlands), Ondře Macl (Czech Republic), Else Tölli (Finland) and Sara Herrera Peralta (Spain). They invite us to a poetic journey and discuss about the future of living. The event was recorded on the 23st of September 2021 by Europarl Audio.

Transpoésie - Festival opening night

<center>Image: © Dragoș Asaftei | Adobe Stock</center>

At their gathering in the Netherlands, leaders from NATO countries are expected to discuss how to ramp up defence spending in the context of Russia’s continued war of aggression against Ukraine and calls from US President Donald Trump for European countries to invest more and take greater responsibility for their defence.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte recently warned that Russia could be ready to use military force against the Western alliance within five years and said that NATO allies must have a credible defence. Ahead of the summit, he has urged NATO members to commit to spending 5% of their national income on defence, a call that is expected to feature prominently in the summit deliberations.

The EU and NATO have founded their long-standing partnership, in an environment shaped by common principles and values. The European Parliament and NATO engage frequently in active dialogue in order to deepen mutual understanding and consolidate cooperation. In an increasingly volatile and unstable geopolitical context, the dynamic of cooperation has intensified to face new threats ranging from terrorism to climate change to hybrid warfare.&nbsp;

EU - NATO relations

With a landmass that stretches from the North Sea and the Baltic Sea in the north to the Alps in the south, Germany has the largest population of any EU country.

Germany borders Denmark to the north, Poland and the Czech Republic to the east, Austria and Switzerland to the south, France and Luxembourg to the southwest, and Belgium and the Netherlands to the northwest. There are 96 members of the European Parliament from Germany.

EU - Germany

Environment Committee MEPs assessed&nbsp;the skills, experience and suitability of Commissioner-designate for Climate Action Wopke Hoekstra on 2 October. He is set to replace Frans Timmermans, who resigned on 22 August to run as a candidate in the forthcoming general elections in the Netherlands.

During his&nbsp;introductory speech, Mr Hoekstra stressed that the Green Deal lays the foundation for the EU’s green transition and underlined that it is of utmost importance to maintain continuity in the EU’s climate ambitions. He hopes to ensure this by swiftly concluding pending climate negotiations and by proposing an ambitious climate target for 2040 in the first quarter of 2024, he said. Mr Hoekstra emphasised that the EU “cannot reach climate neutrality alone”. Global cooperation and climate finance are key during the upcoming UN climate change conference&nbsp;COP28, he stressed, vowing to work “non-stop for success in Dubai”.

He underlined that building a global “Loss and Damage coalition” is crucial to raise finance for developing countries and build trust. Finally, Mr Hoekstra stressed the importance of phasing out fossil fuels, as well as fossil fuels subsidies. “The sooner fossil fuels become history, the better”, he said, as they are “counterproductive for the EU’s energy transition”.

Based on the committee’s recommendations and the assessment by the Conference of Committee Chairs, the Conference of Presidents will conduct the final evaluation and decide whether to close the hearing process and hold a plenary vote.

Hearing of Wopke HOEKSTRA 2023

The Netherlands is a founding member of the European Union.
The Netherlands is a member of the eurozone since 1 January 1999 and of the Schengen area since 26 March 1995.

The Netherlands is a parliamentary constitutional monarchy with a head of government - the prime minister - and a head of state - the monarch. There are 26 members of the European Parliament from the Netherlands.

EU - Netherlands

LUX – The European Audience Film Award is presented every year by the European Parliament and the European Film Academy, in partnership with the European Commission and Europa Cinemas. A symbol of the European Parliament’s commitment to culture, the Lux award continues to build cultural bridges across Europe, by putting the spotlight on films that go to the heart of the European public debate.

The award aims to strengthen ties between politics and citizens, by inviting European audiences to become active protagonists and cast their vote for their favourite films.

Close” by Belgian director Lukas Dhont won the 2023 LUX European Audience Film Award on Tuesday, in a ceremony in the European Parliament’s hemicycle in Brussels. The film, co-produced by Belgium, France and Netherlands, tells the story of an intense friendship between two thirteen-year old boys Leo and Remi. When their friendship is suddenly disrupted, Leo approaches Sophie, Remi’s mother, struggling to understand what has happened. “Close” is a film about friendship and responsibility.

The other four films shortlisted for the award were:&nbsp;“Alcarràs”&nbsp;by Spanish director Carla Simón,&nbsp;“Burning Days”&nbsp;by Turkish director Emin Alper,&nbsp;“Will-o'-the-Wisp”&nbsp;by Portugese director João Pedro Rodrigues and&nbsp;“Triangle of Sadness”&nbsp;by Swedish director Ruben Östlund.

Lux award 2023

The Schuman Declaration was presented by French foreign minister Robert Schuman on 9 May 1950.

It proposed the creation of a European Coal and Steel Community, whose members would pool coal and steel production.
The ECSC (founding members: France, West Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg) was the first of a series of supranational European institutions that would ultimately become today's "European Union".
On 9 May 1950, the Salon de l’Horloge in the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs building on Quai d’Orsay in Paris was transformed into a press room and Robert Schuman gave his speech. Since 1985, Europe Day has been celebrated on 9 May every year.

Schuman Declaration - 9 May 1950

The lead candidate of the Party of European Socialists (PES), Frans Timmermans, 57, was nominated by the members’ congress in Lisbon on 7-8 December 2018.

Frans TIMMERMANS (PvdA, Netherlands) currently serves as First Vice-President of the European Commission. He was first elected to the second chamber of the Dutch Parliament in 1998. From 2007 to 2010 he served as Secretary of State for European Affairs, and from 2012 to 2014 as Minister of Foreign Affairs in Mark Rutte’s cabinet. Mr Timmermans holds a degree in French language and literature from Radboud University.

#EUelections2019 - Frans TIMMERMANS, lead candidate for the PES

MEPs lay out their expectations for the upcoming NATO summit in The Hague on 24-26 June, in a debate with the Council and the Commission.

At their gathering in The Netherlands, leaders from NATO countries are expected to discuss how to ramp up defence spending in the context of Russia’s continued war of aggression against Ukraine and calls from US President Donald Trump for European countries to invest more and take a greater responsibility for their defence. 

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte recently warned that Russia could be ready to use military force against the Western alliance within five years and said that NATO allies must have a creditable defence. Ahead of the summit, he has urged NATO members to commit to spending 5% of their national income on defence, a call that is expected to feature prominently in the summit deliberations.

Debate on the upcoming NATO summit on 24-26 June 2025

In the European elections, people in the European Union vote for Members to represent them in the European Parliament. In 2024, 720 MEPs will be elected. Elections take place every five years. The elections are held in the EU Member States from 6 to 9 June 2024.

EU elections take place today in the Netherlands.

Election Days- 6/6/2024

EP Plenary session - Deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans

Resumption of the session

Opening of the sitting

Statements by the President

Approval of the minutes of the previous sittings

Request for waiver of immunity

Composition of committees and delegations

Negotiations ahead of Council's first reading (Rule 73)

Corrigenda (Rule 251)

Signing of acts adopted in accordance with the ordinary legislative procedure (Rule 81)

Order of business

Devastating floods in Spain, the need to support victims, improve preparedness and fight the climate crisis

EU-US relations in light of the outcome of the US presidential elections

Motions for resolutions - UN Climate Change Conference 2024 in Baku, Azerbaijan (COP29)

Georgia's worsening democratic crisis following recent parliamentary elections and alleged electoral fraud

Deplorable violence around football match in the Netherlands and unacceptable attacks against Israeli fans

Fight against money laundering and terrorist financing: listing Russia as a high-risk third country in the EU

One-minute speeches (Rule 179)

Agenda for next sitting

Closure of the sitting

Plenary session

EU Elections 2024 – Election Night 

First publication of available national estimates

Austria, Cyprus, Germany, Greece, Netherlands

Opening by the Co-Chairs and agenda as proposed by the Executive Board

Health

European democracy

Migration

Values and rights, rule of law and security

Youth, Education and Sport

Conference on the Future of Europe - Plenary (with Metadata)

Migration - Presentation of the Recommendations by European Citizens’ Panel 4 and related National Panels

Conference on the Future of Europe - Plenary 5: Migration

Digital transformation - Presentation of the Recommendations by European Citizens’ Panel 1 and related National Panels

Conference on the Future of Europe - Plenary 4: Digital transformation

Education, culture, youth, and sport - Presentation of the Recommendations by European Citizens’ Panel 1 and related National Panels

Conference on the Future of Europe - Plenary 1: Youth, education and culture

Press point by Guy VERHOFSTADT, co-Chair of the CoFoE on Conference on the Future of Europe - Panel 4 : "EU in the World / Migration" in Maastricht, Netherlands

Opening and agenda as proposed by the Executive Board

Health – Presentation of the recommendations by the European and national citizens’ panels

Conference on the Future of Europe - Plenary 4: Health - Presentation of the recommendations by the European and National Citizens' Panels followed by a debate

Climate change and the environment – Presentation of the recommendations by the European and national citizens’ panels

Conference on the Future of Europe - Plenary 3: Climat Change &  Environement - Presentation of the recommendations by the European and National Citizens' Panels followed by a debate

European democracy – Presentation of the recommendations by the European and national citizens’ panels

Conference on the Future of Europe - Plenary 2: European Democracy - Presentation of the recommendations by the European and National Citizens' Panels followed by a debate

European Citizens’ Panels - presentation by the Co-Chairs and the representatives from the European Citizens’ Panels followed by discussion

Amendment of the agenda 

Report by the Representatives from National Panels and Events on the National panels and events being held

Report from the European Youth Event

Multilingual Digital Platform - presentation by the Co-Chairs of the interim reports and state of play followed by discussion

Closing of the Conference Plenary meeting

Conference on the Future of Europe - Plenary

Purpose and expectations of the Conference including European Citizens' Panels, National Panels/events and Multilingual Digital Platform: presentation and general discussion

Calendar of Conference Plenaries, European Citizens’ Panels and European Citizens’ Event, and Co-chairs proposal on the organisation of thematic working groups: presentation and discussion

Inaugural plenary of the Conference on the Future of Europe

Debate with the Prime Minister of the Netherlands, Mark Rutte, on the Future of Europe (debate)

Formal sitting - Netherlands

Jan Philipp ALBRECHT, Marju LAURISTIN - LIBE rapporteurs, Jeanine HENNIS-PLASSCHAERT, Minister of Defence of the Netherlands and Věra Jourová, European Commissioner for Justice, Consumers and Gender Equality

M. SCHULZ - EP President - M. RUTTE - Prime Minister of the Netherlands - and JC. JUNCKER - EC President

Mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund: Noord Holland ICT/Netherlands (A7-0353/2010, Barbara Matera) (vote)

Mobilisation of the European Globalisation Adjustment Fund: Sweden-Volvo; Austria-Steiermark; Netherlands-Heijmans (debate)

Roberta METSOLA, EP President meets with Dick SCHOOF, Prime Minister of the Netherlands

Dutch MEPs official portraits - 10th Parliamentary term

European elections 2024  - Ambiance shots of polling stations in The Netherlands

Official visit by Roberta METSOLA, EP President to Kerkrade (Netherlands) -  Meeting with young people

EPRS Book Talk - Capitalism Reconnected - Towards a Sustainable, Inclusive and Innovative Market Economy in Europe

Roberta METSOLA, EP President meets with Jan Peter BALKENENDE, Former Dutch Prime minister and Govert BUIJS

Anja HAGA official portrait - 9th Parliamentary term

Roberta METSOLA, EP President meets with  Wopke HOEKSTRA, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands

Official visit by Roberta METSOLA, EP President, to Netherlands (The Hague) - Audience with His Majesty the King Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands

Official visit by Roberta METSOLA, EP President, to Netherlands (The Hague) - Participation in the Meeting of the Council of Ministers of the Netherlands

Official visit by Roberta METSOLA, EP President, to Netherlands (The Hague) - Bilateral meeting with Mark RUTTE, Prime Minister of the Netherlands

Official visit by Roberta METSOLA, EP President, to Netherlands (The Hague) - Town Hall Discussion with Young Students

Official visit by Roberta METSOLA, EP President, to Netherlands (The Hague) - Meeting with Karim KHAN KC, Prosecutor at the International Criminal Court

Official visit by Roberta METSOLA, EP President, to Netherlands (The Hague) - Piotr HOFMAŃSKI, President Judge of the International Criminal Court (ICC)

Official visit by Roberta METSOLA, EP President, to Netherlands (The Hague) - Trilateral meeting with Vera BERGKAMP, Speaker of the House of Representatives and Jan Anthonie BRUIJN, President of the Senate

Opening speech by Roberta METSOLA, EP President at the “Prominent and Promising Women in the EU” exhibition, at the Netherlands Permanent Representation to the EU

"Embrace Ukraine" - charity rally #StrivingTogether: statement by Roberta METSOLA, EP President

MEPs lay out their expectations for the upcoming North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in The Hague on 24-26 June, in a debate with the Commission. At their gathering in The Netherlands, leaders from NATO countries are expected to discuss how to ramp up defence spending in the context of Russia’s continued war of aggression against Ukraine and calls from US President Donald Trump for European countries to invest more and take a greater responsibility for their defence. Closing statements Kaja KALLAS, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission.

Upcoming NATO summit on 24-26 June 2025: closing statements by Kaja KALLAS, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission

MEPs lay out their expectations for the upcoming North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in The Hague on 24-26 June, in a debate with the Commission. At their gathering in The Netherlands, leaders from NATO countries are expected to discuss how to ramp up defence spending in the context of Russia’s continued war of aggression against Ukraine and calls from US President Donald Trump for European countries to invest more and take a greater responsibility for their defence. MEPs 4th part of the debate.

Upcoming NATO summit on 24-26 June 2025: MEPs debate (part 4)

MEPs lay out their expectations for the upcoming North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in The Hague on 24-26 June, in a debate with the Commission. At their gathering in The Netherlands, leaders from NATO countries are expected to discuss how to ramp up defence spending in the context of Russia’s continued war of aggression against Ukraine and calls from US President Donald Trump for European countries to invest more and take a greater responsibility for their defence. MEPs 3rd part of the debate.

Upcoming NATO summit on 24-26 June 2025: MEPs debate (part 3)

MEPs lay out their expectations for the upcoming North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in The Hague on 24-26 June, in a debate with the Commission. At their gathering in The Netherlands, leaders from NATO countries are expected to discuss how to ramp up defence spending in the context of Russia’s continued war of aggression against Ukraine and calls from US President Donald Trump for European countries to invest more and take a greater responsibility for their defence. MEPs 2nd part of the debate.

Upcoming NATO summit on 24-26 June 2025: MEPs debate (part 2)

MEPs lay out their expectations for the upcoming North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in The Hague on 24-26 June, in a debate with the Commission. At their gathering in The Netherlands, leaders from NATO countries are expected to discuss how to ramp up defence spending in the context of Russia’s continued war of aggression against Ukraine and calls from US President Donald Trump for European countries to invest more and take a greater responsibility for their defence. MEPs debate.

Upcoming NATO summit on 24-26 June 2025: MEPs debate (part 1)

MEPs lay out their expectations for the upcoming North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) summit in The Hague on 24-26 June, in a debate with the Commission. At their gathering in The Netherlands, leaders from NATO countries are expected to discuss how to ramp up defence spending in the context of Russia’s continued war of aggression against Ukraine and calls from US President Donald Trump for European countries to invest more and take a greater responsibility for their defence. Opening statements by Kaja KALLAS, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission. This transcription is a result of an automatic process. Please check against delivery.

Upcoming NATO summit on 24-26 June 2025: opening statements by Kaja KALLAS, High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs

This infoclip illustrates the financial landscape using images from major European stock exchanges such as Paris, Netherlands and Milan (for images of the stock market of Milan, ©BORSA ITALIANA EURONEXT GROUP). The video also includes footage from the Frankfurt Stock Exchange (Images free of charge for journalistic purposes using the reference “Deutsche Börse AG”. Use for own advertising purposes is not permitted. For more information, contact media-relations@deutsche-boerse.com), from the money creation process, people withdrawing cash from ATMs, and people paying using mobile phones and contactless cards. It also features the BeTrader academy with interior and exterior shots of people analyzing markets and using trading tools. It includes additional imagery such as banks.

Infoclip: European stock markets and traders

This infoclip illustrates borders in Schengen area, in Czechia, The Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, France, Luxembourg, Romania with cars, trucks,bus, bicycles, tramways, train, pedestrians, motorbikes, tractors crossing borders, with or without frontier post or police borders control.

Infoclip: Schengen area

On 17 December, the European Parliament elected Teresa Anjinho (Portugal) as the European Ombudsman for a five-year mandate, with the support of 344 MEPs in a secret plenary vote. After two rounds of voting, Teresa Anjinho secured the necessary majority of votes cast. Six candidates participated in the first and second ballots: Teresa Anjinho (Portugal), Emilio De Capitani (Italy), Marino Fardelli (Italy), Julia Laffranque (Estonia), Claudia Mahler (Austria), and Reinier van Zutphen (the Netherlands).

Election of the Ombudsman: extracts from the annual report debate (16.12) and from the vote on the new Ombudsman (17.12)

Parliament elects the European Ombudsman, with six candidates vying for the position. As established in rule 237 of Parliament’s Rules of Procedure, in order to be elected a candidate must obtain a majority of votes cast by MEPs. If no candidate is elected after the first two ballots, the two candidates who received the most votes will stand for a third and final ballot. In case of a tie, the oldest candidate shall be appointed. The candidates, listed alphabetically, are: • Teresa Anjinho (Portugal) • Emilio De Capitani (Italy) • Marino Fardelli (Italy) • Julia Laffranque (Estonia) • Claudia Mahler (Austria) • Reinier van Zutphen (The Netherlands) On Tuesday, Parliament backed Teresa Anjinho (Portugal) as the European Ombudsman for a five-year mandate, with the support of 344 MEPs in a secret plenary vote.

Election of the Ombudsman (first and second ballot)

With hate speech and hate crime consistently rising in Europe, the deteriorating situation in Israel and Gaza has prompted a surge in islamophobic and anti-Semitic incidents across member states, according to media and civil society reports. MEPs discuss the deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans. Opening statement by Margaritis SCHINAS, Vice-President of the European Commission

Deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans: closing statement by Margaritis SCHINAS, Vice-President of the European Commission

With hate speech and hate crime consistently rising in Europe, the deteriorating situation in Israel and Gaza has prompted a surge in islamophobic and anti-Semitic incidents across member states, according to media and civil society reports. MEPs discuss the deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans. MEPs debate

Deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans: MEPs debate

Deplorable escalation of violence around the football match in the Netherlands and the unacceptable attacks against Israeli football fans: opening statement by Margaritis SCHINAS, Vice-President of the European Commission

'Lost in Europe' project wins the 2024 Daphne Caruana Galizia Prize for Journalism for its investigation into the disappearance of over 50.000 unaccompanied child migrants. Every year, the Prize endorsed by the European Parliament rewards, (on the anniversary of the assassination of Daphne Caruana Galizia) outstanding journalism that promotes or defends the core principles and values of the European Union such as human dignity, freedom, democracy, equality, rule of law, and human rights. The investigation, run by media from Germany, Italy, Greece, the Netherlands, Belgium, Ireland and the UK revealed that at least 51.433 unaccompanied child migrants disappeared after arriving in European countries between 2021 and 2023. This news item shows extracts from the 2024 Daphne Caruana Galizia Prize ceremony and the statement by Geesje VAN HAREN, representative of the winning project 'Lost in Europe'.

Daphne Caruana Galizia Prize for Journalism 2024: extracts from the ceremony and statement by the laureate

Roberta METSOLA, EP President meets with Dick SCHOOF, Dutch Prime Minister in the European Parliament in Brussels. This news item shows the arrival, the signature of the Golden Book, their meeting and roundtable.

Roberta METSOLA, EP President meets with Dick SCHOOF, Dutch Prime Minister: arrival, signature of the Golden Book, meeting and roundtable

Updated projection for the composition of the new Parliament is based on final and provisional results in 26 countries and pre-electoral data for one (as of 11.45). Final results from nine EU member states: Croatia, Cyprus, France, Germany, Greece, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia; provisional results from 17 countries: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czechia, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden; and pre-electoral data for Ireland. Preliminary figures suggest an estimated turnout across the EU of 50,8%. The projections of Parliament’s composition are based on the structure of the outgoing Parliament and its political groups, without prejudice to the composition of the next Parliament at its constitutive session.

Euroepan Elections 2024 - Updated projections of hemicycle and updated national results

First publication of available national estimates from Netherlands, Austria, Cyprus, Germany, Greece and Malta at 18.40. On Sunday 9th June 2024, the hemicycle of the European Parliament in Brussels transforms into a press room on the occasion of the election night. Over several hours, journalists from all over Europe follow the results thanks to national estimates and exit polling data. From 6 to 9 June 2024, around 360 million Europeans are called to the polls to elect the 720 members of the next European Parliament. The constitutive session of the newly elected Parliament will take place in July, in Strasbourg. This transcription is a result of an automatic process. Please check against delivery.

European Elections Night 2024 - First publication of available national estimates from Netherlands, Austria, Cyprus, Germany, Greece and Malta at 18.40

The video shows a polling station inside a mill, the Kerkhovense Molen in Oisterwijk built in 1895. Citizens in the EU Member States elect their representatives to the European Parliament during the European elections of 6 to 9 June. Hundreds of millions of people across 27 member states vote for the members of Parliament they want to take Europe forward over the next five years, making the European Elections the largest transnational democratic exercise in the world.

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