European Council
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The European Council (referred to as a
European Summit) is the highest political
body of the European Union.[1] It comprises
the heads of state or government of the
Union’s member states along with the Presid-
ent of the European Commission. Its meeting
is chaired by the member from the member
state currently holding Presidency of the
Council of the European Union.[2]
While the Council has no formal executive
or legislative powers, it is an institution that
deals with major issues and any decisions
made are "a major impetus in defining the
general political guidelines of the European
Union". The Council meets at least twice a
year; usually in the Justus Lipsius building,
the quarters of the Council of the European
Union (Consilium) of Brussels.[3][4][5]
History
The first Councils were held in February and
July 1961 (in Paris and Bonn respectively).
They were informal summits of the leaders of
the European Community and were started
due to then-French President Charles de
Gaulle’s resentment at the domination of
supranational institutions (e.g. the European
Commission) over the integration process.
The first influential summit was held in 1969
after a series of irregular summits. The
Hague summit of 1969 reached an agree-
ment on the admittance of the United King-
dom into the Community and initiated foreign
policy cooperation (the European Political
Coo