Treaty on European Union (TEU) / Maastricht Treaty 

The Treaty on European Union, also known as the Treaty of Maastricht, and the signatures of the 12 Ministers for foreign affairs and for finance of theEU countries around    
The Treaty on European Union, also known as the Treaty of Maastricht, and the signatures of the 12 Ministers for foreign affairs and for finance of theEU countries around 

The Treaty on European Union was signed in Maastricht in the presence of the President of the European Parliament, Egon Klepsch.

In accordance with that Treaty the Union was founded on the basis of  the European Communities (first pillar), with two additional areas of cooperation (second and third pillars): the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CSFP) and Justice and Home Affairs (JHA).

Major changes for the European Parliament


Upon entry into force of the Treaty on European Union, the European Economic Community became the European Community(EC).The European Parliaments legislative and supervisory powers increased with the introduction of the co-decision procedure and the extension of the use of the cooperation procedure.

Under the new Treaty the Parliament gained the right to invite the European Commission to present a legislative proposal on matters which, in its view, called for a Community act to be drawn up. The entire Commission also had to be approved by be approved by Parliament. In addition, Parliament became responsible for appointing the European Ombudsman.

  • Signed in: Maastricht (the Netherlands) 7 February 1992
  • Entry into force: 1 November 1993