This WWW Virtual Library: International Affairs Resources is a frequently updated Internet directory of over 2000 annotated links to high-quality English-language sources of information and analysis in a wide range of international affairs, international relations, international studies, global studies, and global education topics. These sites are carefully selected for their long-term value, favoring those with cost-free, authoritative information and analysis online. Each website is described only in general terms because of the typically rapid changes in details of its contents and features.

THE EUROPEAN UNION

Sources for News about the EU

Official EU Sources

Sources about the EU

Sources for News about the European Union

Official European Union Sources

• EUROPA-- The massive EU server, covering the Parliament, the Council, the Commission, the Court of Justice, the Court of Auditors, and other bodies of the European Union. There is a huge amount of information on this site. Check the Newsroom for news, information, and orientation. Basic information about the European Union is found at How the EU Works and a history at The History of the European Union. A Facts and Figures page is available and a page explaining 'eurojargon'. A glossary contains over 200 "terms relating to European integration and the institutions and activities of the EU." The Enlargement section of the European Commission site examines issues of EU enlargement. A portal to all available information on EUROPA about the EU's foreign policies/external relations is found at the European Union External Action Service.

• EU Bookshop-- Handy interactive site "giving access to publications from the EU institutions, agencies and other bodies... with an online catalogue and archive of all EU publications. EU Bookshop will allow users to search for EU publications, order them and where possible, download [often free] copies."

• EUR-Lex-- The searchable portal of the European Union for European Union Law, including the Official Journal of the European Union.

• European Commission Central Library-- Central locator site maintained by the European Commission's unit responsible for libraries and European Documentation Centres, "an essential tool for librarians, documentalists and researchers working on European material." Here is the European Commission Libraries Catalogue of bibliographical references for hundreds of thousands of publications on European affairs, but without document delivery or copy service.

• European Convention-- Web site of the European Convention, which ended in July 2003, posting the proceedings and documents of the meetings and the Draft Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe.

• European Court of Human Rights-- "The only truly judicial organ established by the European Convention on Human Rights... [ensuring], in the last instance, that contracting states observe their obligations under the Convention... All of the Court's judgments, and a significant selection of decisions and reports, are published [online] in the HUDOC database."

• European Documentation Centre-- At the University of Mannheim, part of a network set up by the European Commission to offer "access to official documents and publications of the EU institutions in printed or electronic version." Much information about the EU and many of its full-text electronic documents are accessible on or through this site.

• European Union Institute for Security Studies-- An autonomous agency of the European Union, this institute conducts studies and posts them online, and offers a newsletter about security issues of interest to the EU.

• Eurostat-- "Offers a comprehensive range of printed and electronic publications and datasets that, collectively, cover all areas of European statistics, and at every level of detail." Many statistics, guides, and analytical reports available free online, as well as the Eurostat yearbook. Statistics Explained presents "all possible statistical topics in an easily understandable way... [an] encyclopedia of European statistics, completed by a statistical glossary clarifying all terms used and by numerous links to further information and the very latest data and metadata..."

• European Central Bank-- Chief financial institution of the European Union.

• European Commission Trade Site-- From the European Commission, much information on EU trade matters.

• Fact Sheets on the European Union-- From the European Parliament, scores of sheets "to provide those new to the subject with an overview of the process of European integration and the European Parliament’s role in this development... one of the best sources of information about the Union’s institutions and policies." Also note the Publications section, with "studies and... brochures to provide more detailed knowledge of aspects of the European Union's history."

• Open Data Portal-- This "European Commission Data Portal provides access to open public data from the European Commission. It also provides access to data of other Union institutions, bodies, offices and agencies at their request. The published data can be downloaded by everyone interested to facilitate reuse, linking and the creation of innovative services."

• Public Opinion Analysis-- From the Public Opinion Analysis sector of the European Commission, the searchable central site for EU public opinion surveys, with results and data online, as well as archives. Includes Standard Eurobarometer, Special Eurobarometer, Candidate Countries Eurobarometer, Flash Eurobarometer, and qualitative studies.

• Publications Office of the European Union-- The official publishing house of the European Union "offers a number of online services giving free access to information on EU law, EU publications, EU public procurement, and EU research and development," as well as to the Official Journal of the European Union.

• Summaries of EU Legislation-- "Clear and concise summaries of EU legislation in all policy areas... [in] user-friendly fact sheets which summarise EU legislation... not only summaries of existing measures, but also a follow-up of legislative proposals."

Sources about the European Union

• Archive of European Integration-- From the Library System of the University of Pittsburgh-- "an electronic repository and archive for research materials on the topic of European integration and unification. The AEI collects two types of materials: certain types of independently-produced research materials and official European Community/European Union documents." Many documents and research papers for free download.

• Centre for European Policy Studies-- From Brussels, one of Europe's leading think tanks, with the motto of "Thinking ahead for Europe." Excellent and numerous online publications, full-text and abstracts, and commentary index, largely on the European Union.

• Centre for European Reform-- From London, "a think-tank devoted to improving the quality of the debate on the future of the European Union," pro-European cooperation but with a critical eye to promote "new ideas and policies for reforming the European Union."  Numerous publications online.

• Cicero Foundation-- Non-profit Dutch organization and think tank that actively supports the integration of the Central and Eastern European countries into the EU. Lectures from seminars are available online.

• demosEuropa-- Polish-based EU-focused research organization for pan-European and related global issues, such as changing rationales for European policy, the globalization and deglobalization processes, and the transformation of the global socio-economic model, with publications on these and other topics.

• EU-Russia Centre-- "Independent information and expertise resource for anyone interested in modern Russia, its democratic status and the future of EU-Russia relations. It seeks to promote closer ties between the EU and Russia, to develop ideas about the future of the relationship, and to ensure that both sides adhere to international standards concerning the key elements of a civil society..." Posts news, newsletters, and studies about this topic.

• Eurointernet-- Excellent collection of information resources related to European integration on the Internet, including many full text papers online. Serves as the World Wide Web Virtual Library for European Integration.

• Europages-- Searchable European business directory that provides 2.3 million company addresses from 35 European countries, key business information, links to yellow pages throughout Europe and to world business sites.

• European Citizen Action Service-- NGO "independent of political parties, commercial interests and the EU Institutions. The association’s mission is to enable NGOs and individuals to make their voice heard with the EU." Site features news, documents, publications, and more about EU citizenship and civil society, rights, and transparency.

• European Council on Foreign Relations-- "First pan-European think tank... its objective is to conduct research and promote informed debate across Europe on the development of coherent and effective European values-based foreign policy."  Posts publications, podcasts, articles, blogs, and the annual "European Foreign Policy Scorecard," all about Europe's role in the world.

• European Institute-- From the London School of Economics and Political Science, an outstanding "primary focus for the inter-disciplinary study of processes of integration and fragmentation within Europe." Posts many papers in its priority areas of research: governance of the European Union, European ideas and identities, and European political economy. Note the useful Research Resources on Europe page.

• European Integration History Index-- "Provides Internet resources on the History of Europe after WWII in all languages. European Integration is here understood as the process of political, economic and cultural integration and co-operation between various European countries in the 20th century - mainly in the period after 1945."

• European Integration Resources Guide-- From the University of Leiden, a comprehensive guide in PDF to EU institutions and digital sources for academic research on the EU.

• European Parliament Research Group-- From the London School of Economics and Political Science, the website for scholars on the EU Parliament. Posts papers, data, links to member scholars, and ongoing projects.

• European Policy Centre-- Excellent innovative, society-wide think-tank in Brussels for debate of European Union policy issues, with many documents, studies, and articles online.

• European Policy Institutes Network-- "Network of dynamic think tanks and policy institutes focusing on current EU and European political and policy debates... with almost 40 member think tanks in 28 countries... EPIN aims to contribute to the debate on the Future of Europe through up to the minute, expert analysis and commentary and through providing easy access to understanding the different national debates." Many studies posted online.

• European Research Papers Archive-- Excellent site allows a broad database search of hundreds of online working papers about European integration, from several research centers.

• European Union Centers of Excellence-- Network of U.S. universities that "promotes the study of the EU, its institutions and policies and EU-US relations." Site "serves as a portal to the individual Center pages as well as an archive of outcomes and best practices contributed by the network members," posts "a number of resources of interest to college and K-12 educators, as well as business and academic professionals," and provides access to the valuable archive of the papers from the biennial conferences of the European Union Studies Association.

• European Union History Site-- From the History Department of Leiden University: "On this site you will find all sorts of information regarding the history of the European Union."

• European Union Studies Association-- "The premier scholarly and professional association, worldwide, focusing on the European Union," with "information on EUSA's programs and activities, such as the Forum essays from our quarterly EUSA Review, ideas and syllabi for teaching the EU, updates on our next international conference, an annotated list of valuable EU-related Web links, and more." Papers from the biennial conferences of the organization are available.

• European University Institute-- University consortium that provides "advanced academic training to doctoral researchers and... research at the highest level," with "a European perspective in economics, law, history and civilization, and political and social sciences." Many research products on EU affairs and related topics are available here, including through the search engine for the Cadmus database. Note the European Union Research Guide.

• European Values Study-- "Large-scale, cross-national, and longitudinal survey research program on basic human values [in Europe], [carried on by] the European Values Study group...  aimed at exploring the moral and social values underlying European social and political institutions and governing conduct." Site posts surveys and results, newsletters, link to data, and more.

• Exploring EU Foreign Policy-- From the Catholic University of Leuven, "this online resource guide for researchers, practitioners and students is a comprehensive guide through the maze of information sources on EU foreign policy... This website is a Jean Monnet Action and has received funding from the European Community."

• Federal Trust-- From the UK, Europe's oldest think-tank on European integration, focused on good governance and "the interactions between regional, national, European and global levels of government." Online studies.

• FRIDE-- "A European think tank for global action, which provides innovative thinking and rigorous analysis of key debates in international relations. Our mission is to inform policy and practice in order to ensure that the EU plays a more effective role in supporting multilateralism, democratic values, security, and sustainable development." Posts many studies on these topics.

• Jean Monnet Program-- At  the New York University School of Law, publishes online the excellent Jean Monnet Working Papers on topics of European integration, with many other online resources also available at or through this site.

• Notre Europe-- With the slogan "Thinking a United Europe," this think tank "organises seminars and conferences, directs studies, consultations, and publications, launches information campaigns, and carries out other types of work of European interest in collaboration with institutions or press organisations." Online are many papers, seminar reports, debates, and sources of information off-site.

• Open Europe-- "Independent think tank, with offices in London and Brussels, which "believes that the EU must now embrace radical reform based on economic liberalisation, a looser and more flexible structure, and greater transparency and accountability if it is to overcome these [current] challenges and succeed in the twenty-first century."

• Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies-- From the European University Institute, promotes research on the major issues confronting European society, principally the construction of Europe. Hundreds of first-rate studies are available online. Note the EUI's database Historical Archives of the European Union, with some online access to the European Communities' files and "papers of European politicians or officials, or archives of European associations, parties and organisations that have played a significant part in the march towards European integration." The European Elections Monitor provides in-depth analysis of European elections.

• Security and Defence Agenda-- "The only think-tank in Brussels focusing exclusively on defence and security issues... gathering representatives from NATO and the EU, national governments and parliaments, industry, academia, think-tanks, NGOs and the media." Posts news, studies, conference reports, and similar items.

• Statewatch-- From London, a non-profit group of "lawyers, academics, journalists, researchers and community activists" that "encourages the publication of investigative journalism and critical research in the fields of the state, civil liberties and openness" in the European Union and its members. News, bulletin, documents, and analytical papers online or linked.

• TEAM-- "Information network linking 49 organisations, political parties and non-parties, from 18 countries across Europe" that oppose the European Union and what they believe are its threats to democratic values.

• Trans European Policy Studies Association-- "The first transeuropean research network, comprises leading research institutes in the field of European affairs throughout Europe,... [whose] aim is to provide high quality research on European integration in order to stimulate discussion on policies and political options for Europe... by interaction between the European and national institutions as well as the academic and research community." Posts publications and a newsletter on integration issues.