The Treaty signed on 7 February 1992 in Maastricht lays the foundations for a new European structure. It establishes a ‘European Union' that brings together not only the three European Communities, but also two areas of political cooperation between Member States (CFSP and JHA). The aim is to allow these three elements to develop within a unified framework. This new structure is generally represented in the form of a Greek temple made of three pillars: the Community pillar, which has a supranational character, and the second and third pillars, which have an intergovernmental character.

Diagram showing the interaction between the different European institutions in the fields covered by the common foreign and security policy (CFSP), following the entry into force on 1 November 1993 of the Treaty on European Union, signed in Maastricht on 7 February 1992.

Diagram showing the three-pillar structure of the European Union as created by the Maastricht Treaty signed on 7 February 1992 and modified by the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1997. The Community pillar, which has a supranational character, includes the three European Communities. The second and third pillars, which have an intergovernmental character, concern respectively the common foreign and security policy (CFSP) and police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters (PJCC).

Diagram showing the interaction between the different European institutions in the fields covered by the common foreign and security policy (CFSP), following the entry into force on 1 May 1999 of the Amsterdam Treaty, signed on 2 October 1997.

Diagram showing the three-pillar structure of the European Union following the entry into force of the Nice Treaty on 1 February 2003.

Diagram showing the interaction between the different European institutions in the fields covered by the common foreign and security policy (CFSP), following the entry into force on 1 February 2003 of the Nice Treaty, signed on 26 February 2001.

Diagram showing the interaction between the different European institutions in the fields of police and judicial cooperation in criminal matters (PJCC).