The European Union comprises 28 countries that require CE Marking. In March this year, the Philippines’ Senate ratified the FTA with the EFTA as part of the country’s strategy to gain a stronger foothold in the European market. Presidency of the Council of the EU. Western Asia’s most populous city is the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, with a population of about 8.7 million. The GDP per capita is low, and the infant mortality rate is high. This means a partial or full removal … b) Switzerland is not a member of the European Union, but for some products it accepts the CE marking as a presumption of conformity with Swiss national technical regulations. The European Union’s GSP is widely recognised as the most progressive in terms of coverage and benefits.. Council of the European Union. Created in 1994, the European Economic Area (EEA) combines the countries of the European Union (EU) and member countries of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) to facilitate participation in the European Market trade and movement without having to apply to be one of the EU member countries. The territories of the European Union Members that are outside of Europe, are exempted from the European Union. c) Turkey is neither member of the EU, nor is considered a part of the EEA. The "Birthday" of the European Union is considered May 9, 1950. The first agreement establishing the European Economic Community was signed in 1957 by six countries: Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. For example, the French overseas departments of French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte and Réunion, and the overseas collectivity of Saint-Martin as well, are part of the European Union but do not part of the Schengen Zone. Many of its citizens lack access to health care and higher education as well. Three additional countries (Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein), although not officially part of the European Union, are signatories to the European Economic Area (EEA). The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between the Philippines and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) will enter into force for Switzerland and the Philippines on June 1, 2018. Current list of all 27 European Union countries. The visa policy allows nationals of certain countries to enter the Schengen Area via air, land or sea without a visa for stays of up to 90 days within a 180-day period. Every member state is part of the founding treaties of the union and is subjected to binding … However, Turkey has fully implemented many of the European CE marking directives. Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) European Central Bank (ECB) European Court of Auditors (ECA) European External Action Service (EEAS) European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) Generalised Scheme of Preferences in a nutshell . The visa policy of the Schengen Area is set by the European Union and applies to the Schengen Area and to other EU member states except Ireland. It is even part of the European Union. The EU offers: Standard GSP for low and lower-middle income countries. The Philippines has an FTA with Japan, the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement and also concluded an FTA with the European Free Trade Association group of … European Commission. At present, May 9 is celebrated annually as Europe Day. The Philippines is historically a Third World country and currently a developing country. Though technically part of Asia, Cyprus is usually considered a European country from political and economic perspectives. The European Union (EU) is a political and economic union, consisting of 27 member states that are subject to the obligations and the privileges of the membership.