(a) EuropeanUnion-The European Coaland Steel Community (ECSC) and European Economic Community (EEC) were created to foster economic interdependence. On 7thFebruary 1992, the Maastricht Treaty was signed to create the European Union. This led to expansion of spheres of cooperation to include internal affairs, judicial matters, foreign policy, etc. The Euro (€) is the official currency of 19 out of 28 countries of the EU. These nations are collectively called Eurozone.
The Schengen Agreement (1985) was signed by France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg. Today 22 countries are part of the Schengen Area which is an area without internal borders. The EU functions on four key institutions viz. European Commission, European Parliament, European council and European court of Justice. The UK formally ended it’s membership of the EU on 31st January 2020.
(b) SAARC – It was formed in 1985 at Dhaka with seven members viz. Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. In 2006, SAFTA was activated. Afghanistan joined SAARC in 2007. There are also nine observers such as EU, China, UK, USA, etc.
(c) BIMSTEC – The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation was established in 1997. It comprises of five countries from South Asia viz. Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and two countries from South-East Asia viz. Myanmar, Thailand. BIMSTEC aims to facilitate collaboration and rapid economic development among countries lying in adjacent areas of the Bay of Bengal.
(d) Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) – It was founded in 2001 in Shanghai by the leaders of China, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. In 2016, India and Pakistan joined the SCO. The focus of SCO is to bring about peace, stability and cooperation in the Eurasian region.
(e) G-20 – This forum was created in 1999 with the aim to discuss policies relating to financial stability. It includes developed countries like USA, UK, France, Germany the EU as well as.
