歐洲原子能共同體

歐洲原子能共同體（EURATOM），由歐洲聯盟成員國組成的國際組織。在1957年 3月25日，《歐洲煤鋼聯營條約》成員國簽訂《羅馬條約》，决定成立共同市場及原子能共同體。後來，根据《1965年布魯塞爾條約》（Merger Treaty）在1967年將《歐洲煤鋼聯營條約》及歐洲經濟共同體的合併到統一架構內。如今，歐洲原子能共同體已經在歐洲聯盟架構內。

歐洲原子能共同體成立目的為核子能源聯營及分銷共同市場，並可出售剩餘核子能源至境外國家。

歷史

最初ECSC提議擴展其權力以涵蓋其他種類的能源。但是ECSC的主席Jean Monnet認為需要另一個組織去處理核能。一個由Louis Armand負責對歐洲核能使用的研究認為，基於煤的衰竭和減少對石油的依賴核能是需要發展的。 BENELUX和德國都認為需要一個共通的市場，而法國則基於保護主義反對。最後Monnet提議一個分開的原子能源經濟組織以聯合各國。

The Intergovernmental Conference on the Common Market and Euratom at Val Duchesse in 1956 drew up the essentials of the new treaties. Euratom would foster co-operation in the nuclear field, at the time a very popular area, and would, along with the EEC, share the Common Assembly and Court of Justice of the ECSC, but not its executives. Euratom would have its own Commission, with fewer powers than the ECSC's High Authority, and Council. On 25 March 1957, the Treaties of Rome were signed by the ECSC members and on 1 January 1958 they came into force.[2][3][4]

To save on resources, these separate executives created by the Rome Treaties were merged in 1965 by the Merger Treaty. The institutions of the EEC would take over responsibilities for the running of the EEC and Euratom, with all three then becoming known as the European Communities although each legally existed separately. In 1993, the Maastricht Treaty created the European Union, which absorbed the Communities into the European Community pillar, yet Euratom still maintains a distinct legal personality and the treaty remains in force relatively un-amended from its original signing.

The European Constitution was intended to consolidate all previous treaties and increase democratic accountability in them. The Euratom had not been amended in the same way the other treaties had and hence the European Parliament had been granted few powers of it. However, the reason it had gone unamended was the same reason the Constitution left it to remain separate from the rest of the EU: anti-nuclear sentiment among the European electorate which may unnecessarily turn voters against the treaty.[5][6][7]