Council of Europe, European Council, and the Council of European Union: Sounds Similar but Somehow Different! 

Despite their similar names, the Council of Europe, European Council, and Council of European Union all have very different powers and mandates for the European Union. However, it is natural for someone who is less interested in such institutional detail distinctions to fail to grasp how they differ and what their peculiarities are. As a result, this week's post focuses on alerting readers about their distinctions.

First and foremost, when all three institutions are considered, just one non-EU university stands out. It is the Council of Europe, which is not a European Union entity but an international body that includes more than just EU member states. Even the United Kingdom, which famously exited the Union in 2020 via Brexit, is compromised by the Council of Europe. Furthermore, it includes actors who are not European but are a strong partners or candidate countries for the Union. Examples include Turkey and the Republic of Moldova. Russia, on the other hand, is barred from joining the Council of Europe, as determined by the Committee of Ministers on March 16, 2022.

The European Council, on the other hand, is the European Union organization in charge of determining the Union's political orientation and priorities. The European Council became an official EU organization in 2009, thanks to the Treaty of Lisbon. The European Council is made up of the heads and governments of EU member states, as well as the President of the European Council and the President of the European Commission. Charles Michel, the former Prime Minister of Belgium, currently serves as President of the European Council. On the other hand, Ursula von der Leyen is the President of the European Commission. The European Council lacks legislative authority: it lacks the ability to enact legislation. The EU has only three legislative institutions: the European Commission, the European Parliament, and the Council of the European Union which we will be tackling now.

Finally, the Council of the European Union, in addition to being one of the three legislative organs of the European Union, has budgetary authority. As a result, the Council of the European Union amends approves, or rejects not only the proposals of the European Commissions but also the budget. The Council of the European Union is also known as the Council or, more colloquially, the Council of Ministers. The reason for such designation is essentially self-explanatory given its mandate: the Council meets in ten distinct configurations, with 27 national ministers from each member state participating depending on the arrangement and the topic to be discussed. As a result, if the Council is going to address agriculture, each member state appoints its national minister in charge of agriculture. Meetings and their overall direction are overseen by presidencies, which rotate every six months among the governments of EU member states. The Czech Republic currently holds the presidency of the Council, which began on July 1, 2022.