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The European People's Party (EPP) is a conservative[6] and Christian democratic[6] European political party. A transnational organisation, it is composed of other political parties, not individuals. Founded by primarily Christian democratic parties in 1976, it has since broadened its membership to include liberal-conservative parties and parties with other centre-right political perspectives.[7][8][9][10]
The EPP has been the largest party in the European Parliament since 1999 and in the European Council since 2002. It is also by far the largest party in the current European Commission. The President of the European Council, President of the European Commission and the President of the European Parliament are all from the EPP. Many of the Founding fathers of the European Union were also from parties that later formed the EPP. Outside the EU the party also controls a majority in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe.
It is the global international political group dedicated to the promotion of Christian democracy. Although it gathers parties from around the globe, its members are drawn principally from Europe and Latin America.
The CDI's European division is the European People's Party, currently the largest European political party. Its Latin American equivalent is the Christian Democrat Organization of America. The Democratic Party of the United States of America maintains links with CDI through the National Democratic Institute for International Affairs.
Establishment history Dec 1925: The first international gathering ofCatholic-Christian democratic parties takes place in Paris and they establish the Secrétariat International des Partis Démocratiques d'Inspiration Chrétienne (SIPDIC).[8] Member parties were from Belgium, Germany, Italy, France, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Austria, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Spain, Portugal and Lithuania.
Vatican City has an open border with the EU and intends to join the Schengen Information System.It also uses the euro as its sole currency and has an agreement with the EU allowing it to mint its own coins.[2] The EU gave Italy authority to negotiate a deal with the Holy See in 2000 which allowed the Holy See to mint a maximum of €670,000. After a review of the arrangements, a new agreement came into force in 2010, which allowed it to mint €1 million a year (plus up to an additional €300,000 on special occasions)
Vatican City is not part of the EU's customs union or its VAT area like some other small European states are. However Vatican City is exempt from duties and taxes and the small amount of goods exported from Vatican City are exempt from duty
Activity
The National Democratic Institute has worked in 132 countriesand territories around the world and supported the efforts of 15,000 civic organizations, 850 political parties and organizations, 10,000 legislators, and 1,300 women's organizations. Furthermore, NDI has organized over 150 international election observer delegations in over 62 countries. NDI has monitored over 340 referenda and elections and trained over 3 million election observers in over 85 countries.
Madeleine Jana Korbel Albright[2] (born Marie Jana Korbelová; May 15, 1937)[3][4] is an American politician and diplomat. She is the first female United States Secretary of State in U.S. history, havingserved from 1997 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton.
Albright currently[when?] serves as chair of Albright Stonebridge Group and as a professor of International Relations at Georgetown University's School of Foreign Service. In May 2012, she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by U.S. President Barack Obama.[5] Secretary Albright also serves as a director on the board of the Council on Foreign Relations.[
Investments
Madeleine Albright is a co-investor with Jacob Rothschild, 4th Baron Rothschild, and George Soros in a $350 million investment vehicle called Helios Towers Africa, which intends to buy or build thousands of mobile phone towers in Africa.
Also in 2001, Albright founded the Albright Group, an international strategy consulting firm based in Washington, D.C. that later become the Albright Stonebridge Group.[75] Affiliated with the firm is Albright Capital Management, which was founded in 2005 to engage in private fund management related to emerging markets.[76]
Albright has described Donald Trump as "the most anti-democratic leader" in US history.[93][94] She has also criticised the Trump Administration for its delay in filling some diplomatic posts as a sign of "disdain for diplomacy"