The Maastricht Treaty

Ishika Aggarwal — February 2021

If you choose Maastricht as your student city, you should understand the city’s key interesting facts. Today, the city is a thriving cultural and regional hub. It became well known through the Maastricht Treaty and as the birthplace of the euro. So, let me give you some fun facts about the Treaty of this amazing city.

The Treaty of Maastricht, here shown at an exhibition in Regensburg

The Maastricht Treaty, officially known as the Treaty on European Union, laid the foundations for the European Union as we know it today. The Maastricht Treaty officially came into force on November 1st, 1993 and the European Union was officially established. It was the result of several years of discussions between governments and was signed in the Dutch city of Maastricht, which lies close to the borders with Belgium and Germany. Here are five things you need to know about the Treaty.

1. The establishment of the European Union which led to greater cooperation. The European citizenship allowed citizens to reside in and move freely between the Member States. The common foreign and security policy ensured every day the “safeguarding the common values, fundamental interests and independence of the Union”. Finally, the EU also ensures close cooperation on justice and home affairs to ensure the safety and security of European citizens.
2. It was signed by 12 countries. Belgium, Denmark, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, and the United Kingdom. Since then, a further 16 countries have joined the EU* and adopted the rules set out in the Maastricht Treaty or in the treaties that followed later. *There are now 27 EU Member States following the departure of the United Kingdom from the EU.
3. It laid the foundation for the euro. The Maastricht Treaty paved the way for the creation of a single European currency: the euro. It also established the European Central Bank (ECB) and the European System of Central Banks and describes their objectives. The main objective for the ECB is to maintain price stability, i.e. to safeguard the value of the euro.
4. It introduced the criteria that countries must need to join the euro. The purpose of these particular rules sometimes referred to as the Maastricht criteria or the convergence criteria, is to ensure price stability is maintained in the euro area even when new countries join the currency. The rules work to ensure that countries joining are stable in the areas — Inflation, levels of public debts, interest rate, and exchange rate.
5. It was a giant leap forward to European integration. European leaders have agreed on additional steps to promote further integration between European states such as The Stability and Growth Pact- The Stability and Growth Pact was agreed in 1997 to ensure that countries followed sound budgetary policies. The European Stability Mechanism-The European Stability Mechanism was established to provide financial assistance to euro area countries experiencing or threatened by severe financing problems. The Banking Union- The Single Supervisory Mechanism and the Single Resolution Board were created after the financial crisis to make the European banking system safer, as well as to increase financial integration and stability.

Hopefully, this blog gave you a better insight into the great Maastricht Treaty. If you have any doubts or want to know more about the city, please feel free to reach out to one of us and we will be happy to tell you more!