Regional organizations are international organizations which bring particular states together mainly for economic and political purposes. 

European Union is a regional organization, which consists of 28 European states that aims at implementing a common economic, social, and security policies. 

The Maastricht Treaty, also known as European Union Treaty, was signed on 7th February, 1992 in Maastricht, Netherlands and came into force in 1993.

On 29th October, 2004, twenty-five member states of the EU signed the Treaty of creating a Constitution for Europe which would replace all the existing treaties.

The Lisbon Treaty was signed on 13th of December, 2007 and came into force in 2009. This treaty simplified the operation modes and voting system. It created an office for a full time Presidency of European Council for a period of 2,5 years which is selected by the leaders of Member States from a pool they create.

The European Union does not only suggest to produce common policies in the economy but also in agriculture, transportation, energy, industry, politics and military fields. 

The concept of ‘European governance’ refers to the set of rules, procedures and  practices that determines how the authorities are distributed and used within the EU.

European Council is the organ that gathers presidents, heads of states of member states in the EU. In addition to the top leaders of the member states, the European Council President and President of the European Commission participate the meetings. It does not have an authority of legislation; however, it sets the main goals of the European Union and its policy agenda. 

The EU’s regulations, are superior to the national laws of the member states. These regulations take priority over the national judicial system of the member states. The EU regulations are binding for all member states.

ALADI is the ultimate phase of an integration process started in the late 1950s. The initial stage was the foundation of the Latin American Free Trade Association (LAFTA) in 1960 which failed to satisfy the expectations. The motivation behind forming such anssociation was promoting economic activities following the destruction of World War II. The idea was alike Europen Economic Community which was founded 2 years before LAFTA in Western Europe.

Andean Community is a trade bloc which aims at forming a customs union among the South African countries of Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru. By 2018, the Community has approximately 110 million of population in 3,809,100 square kilometers with a combined GDP (sum of GDP’s of all members) of USD 608 billion USD.

Andean Integration System (SAI) is the structure that connects and suggests various bodies to work harmoniously. These are: Andean Presidential Council, Andean Council of Foreign Ministers, Commission Headquarters, Andean Court of Justice, Andean Parliament and Latin American Reserve Fund.

The Council is the supreme body of the Andean Integration System and consists of the heads of state of the member states of Andean Community. It determines the guidelines on Andean integration, which must be performed by other bodies and institutions.

The Commission is the principal policy developing body of the organization. It consists of representatives from each member states. The Comission expresses itself through Decisions. The Comission carries out and evaluates the integration policy in the area of trade, investment. It coordinates with the Andean Council of Foreign Ministers when it is necessary. The Commission approves, rejects or amends the proposals presented to it by the member states, individually, collectively or by the General Secreteariat.

The Eurasian Economic Community (EAEC or EurAsEC) is a regional organization which aims at forming a Customs Union, Common Economic Space among the member states and coordinate the actions of member states’ integration into the
world economy.

The Committee is a standing body of the Eurasian Economic Community which accounts for the Eurasec Interstate Council. The Integration Committee consists of the deputy heads of the governments of member states.

It evaluates the status and development trends of the integration processes in the Community, submits draft proposals of resolutions to Interstate Council for further integration and coordination of the customs policies.

The Interparliamentary Assembly of the Eurasian Economic Community (Eurasec IPA) is the body of parliamentary collaboration within the scope of the Eurasian Economic Community. The Eurasec IPA does consist of deputies delegated by the each of the parliaments of Eurasec member states. 

The differences between the U.S. and Canada were quite small when compared to Mexico. Both states were liberal democracies and open economies. Although there were solid barriers to form a regional cooperation in Noth America, the political leaders insisted to reach a consensus realizing the potential benefits of integration.

The Secretariat functions as an administrator for the Free Trade Council and it is organized on a national basis, with each of the three partners. The Secretariat is located in various locations. It is made up of the permanent national section offices based in Mexico City, Ottawa and Washington each headed by a Secretary appointed by the government of partner country.

ASEAN consists of 10 member states with a combined GDP of more than USD 2,55 trillion in 2016, which makes it the world’s 6th largest economy if it were a unified nation. The combined population of ASEAN is 635 million which coincides 8,7 % of the world’s total population that is the third largest following China and India. It covers a total area of 4,5 million square km. 

ASEAN took the place of the Association of South East Asia (ASA), which was formed by the Philippines, Thailand and the Federation of Malaya (Malaysia for the moment) in 1961. It mainly focuses on economic cooperation, encourages trade among ASEAN member countries while also promoting trading activites
between ASEAN and the rest of the world.