The Concept of Citizenship in the Treaty on European Union

Abstract

Citizenship is a political concept which defines the constitutional relationship between an individual and the State and it implies certain political rights. Within the European Community, some of these rights have been developed in an incipient form from the Rome Treaty and the SEA. The Maastricht Treaty on European Union (TEU) has introduced a systematic notion of citizenship which consolidates these rights and provides a legal basis for new ones. The concept of citizenship developed by the TEU does not imply a relationship between individual and the new entity which is akin to that between Member States and individuals. Union citizenship has not superseded the individual nationalities of Member States. A