EU Council

In Model UN, an EU Council committee replicates one of two distinct EU institutions, and delegates should clarify which one before researching.

The Council of the European Union (often called the Council of Ministers) is the legislative body where national ministers from each member state meet in sector-specific configurations (e.g., Foreign Affairs Council, ECOFIN, Justice and Home Affairs). It co-legislates with the European Parliament under the ordinary legislative procedure introduced by the Treaty of Lisbon (2009).

The European Council, by contrast, is composed of the heads of state or government of the 27 member states, the President of the European Council, and the President of the European Commission. It sets the EU's overall political direction and priorities but does not pass legislation. It was formalized as an EU institution by the Treaty of Lisbon.

Key procedural features delegates should know:

• Voting thresholds vary. The Council of the EU uses qualified majority voting (QMV) for most matters — defined since 2014 as 55% of member states representing at least 65% of the EU population (the "double majority" rule). Sensitive areas like foreign and security policy, taxation, and treaty change require unanimity.
• Rotating Presidency. The Council of the EU presidency rotates among member states every six months in a pre-set trio arrangement.
• High Representative. The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy chairs the Foreign Affairs Council.
• No bloc politics in the usual MUN sense. Delegates represent governments with formal positions; informal groupings (Frugal Four, Visegrád, Med7) often shape negotiations.

Typical MUN agenda items include enlargement, the Multiannual Financial Framework, sanctions packages, migration policy, and responses to crises such as the war in Ukraine. Crisis committees may simulate emergency European Council summits where chairs expect delegates to draft Council Conclusions rather than UN-style resolutions.