Northern Croatia or North Croatia ( Croatian : Sjeverna Hrvatska , pronounced [sjêʋeːrnaː xř̩ʋaːtskaː] ) refers to the northern parts of Croatia , encompassing Zagreb , Varaždin , Međimurje , Zagorje and Koprivnica-Križevci counties, including the cities of Zagreb , Varaždin , Čakovec , Krapina , Koprivnica and Križevci . The region is home to the Kajkavian dialect , which some consider to be a separate language of its own. The region borders Hungary to its north-east and Slovenia to its north-west.
54-624: The term had not been used in official capacity until recently. Until 2012, the region's borders coincided with the NUTS-2 region Northwest Croatia ( Sjeverozapadna Hrvatska in Croatian). This NUTS-2 region was then merged with Central and Eastern Croatia ( Središnja i Istočna Hrvatska ) forming the NUTS-2 region Continental Croatia . As of 2021, the NUTS-2 region of "Northern Croatia" was established again, which contains all of Northern Croatia with
108-497: A formalisation of the situation. EU integration is not always symmetrical, with some states proceeding with integration ahead of hold-outs. There are several different forms of closer integration both within and outside the EU's normal framework. One mechanism is enhanced cooperation where nine or more states can use EU structures to progress in a field that not all states are willing to partake in. Some states have gained an opt-out in
162-607: A greater or lesser extent. If an aspect is not listed in the table below, then it remains the exclusive competence of the member state. Perhaps the best known example is taxation, which remains a matter of state sovereignty. As a result of the European sovereign debt crisis , some eurozone states were given a bailout from their fellow members via the European Financial Stability Facility and European Financial Stability Mechanism (replaced by
216-401: A monarch although political powers are exercised by elected politicians. Most republics and all the monarchies operate a parliamentary system whereby the head of state (president or monarch) has a largely ceremonial role with reserve powers . That means most power is in the hands of what is called in most of those countries the prime minister, who is accountable to the national parliament . Of
270-458: A new country applying from scratch. However, other studies claim internal enlargement is legally viable if, in case of a member state dissolution or secession, the resulting states are all considered successor states . There is also a European Citizens' Initiative that aims at guaranteeing the continuity of rights and obligations of the European citizens belonging to a new state arising from
324-538: A state must fulfil the economic and political requirements known as the Copenhagen criteria , which require a candidate to have a democratic government and free-market economy together with the corresponding freedoms and institutions, and respect for the rule of law . Enlargement of the Union is also contingent upon the consent of all existing members and the candidate's adoption of the existing body of EU law, known as
378-465: A template for the pro-EU regions of the UK remaining within the EU or its single market. Beyond the formal withdrawal of a member state, there are a number of independence movements such as Catalonia or Flanders which could result in a similar situation to Greenland. Were a territory of a member state to secede but wish to remain in the EU, some scholars claim it would need to reapply to join as if it were
432-600: Is a geocode standard for referencing the administrative divisions of countries for statistical purposes. The standard, adopted in 2003, is developed and regulated by the European Union , and thus only covers the EU member states in detail. The Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics is instrumental in the European Union's Structural Funds and Cohesion Fund delivery mechanisms and for locating
486-595: Is a political and economic union of 27 member states that are party to the EU's founding treaties , and thereby subject to the privileges and obligations of membership. They have agreed by the treaties to share their own sovereignty through the institutions of the European Union in certain aspects of government. State governments must agree unanimously in the Council for the union to adopt some policies; for others, collective decisions are made by qualified majority voting . These obligations and sharing of sovereignty within
540-415: Is delegated by each member to the institutions in return for representation within those institutions. This practice is often referred to as 'pooling of sovereignty'. Those institutions are then empowered to make laws and execute them at a European level. If a state fails to comply with the law of the European Union , it may be fined or have funds withdrawn. In contrast to some international organisations,
594-610: Is no provision to expel a member state, but TEU Article 7 provides for the suspension of certain rights. Introduced in the Treaty of Amsterdam , Article 7 outlines that if a member persistently breaches the EU's founding principles (liberty, democracy, human rights and so forth, outlined in TEU Article 2 ) then the European Council can vote to suspend any rights of membership, such as voting and representation. Identifying
SECTION 10
#1732772273397648-640: Is one of the layer cakes popular in Northern Croatia, especially in the Međimurje region. The Northern Croatia region is at the borders with Hungary and Slovenia. The north–south highway corridor provides access to the Adriatic , which is a geographic advantage to the other countries in Southern Europe . All of North Croatia is connected to the rest of Croatia by highways. 95% of the houses in
702-639: Is superior to State law is subject to some debate. The treaties do not give a judgement on the matter but court judgements have established EU's law superiority over national law and it is affirmed in a declaration attached to the Treaty of Lisbon (the proposed European Constitution would have fully enshrined this). The legal systems of some states also explicitly accept the Court of Justice's interpretation, such as France and Italy, however in Poland it does not override
756-511: Is the city of Ludbreg railway station, a city between two major regional capitals - Varaždin and Koprivnica . The innovative sector of Northern Croatia has experienced growth in the past years. In 2005, Microsoft established a worker training center in Varaždin . Following this, many other companies have established universities in the fields of Information technology , Automation , and Electronics . The continued investment in universities in
810-464: Is too small or too large, a second and/or third level is created. This may be on the first level (ex. France, Italy, Greece, and Spain), on the second (ex. Germany) and/or third level (ex. Belgium). In countries with small populations, where the entire country would be placed on the NUTS 2 or even NUTS 3 level (ex. Luxembourg, Cyprus), the regions at levels 1, 2 and 3 are identical to each other (and also to
864-435: The acquis communautaire . The United Kingdom , which had acceded to the EU's predecessor in 1973, ceased to be an EU member state on 31 January 2020, in a political process known as Brexit . No other member state has withdrawn from the EU and none has been suspended, although some dependent territories or semi-autonomous areas have left . There are a number of overseas member state territories which are legally part of
918-569: The European Commission a European commissioner . The commissioners do not represent their member state, but instead work collectively in the interests of all the member states within the EU. In the 1950s, six core states founded the EU's predecessor European Communities ( Belgium , France , Italy , Luxembourg , the Netherlands , and West Germany ). The remaining states have acceded in subsequent enlargements . To accede,
972-533: The European Stability Mechanism from 2013), but this came with conditions. As a result of the Greek government-debt crisis , Greece accepted a large austerity plan including privatisations and a sell off of state assets in exchange for their bailout. To ensure that Greece complied with the conditions set by the European troika (ECB, IMF, Commission), a 'large-scale technical assistance' from
1026-480: The National Council of Slovenia . All elections in member states use some form of proportional representation . The most common type of proportional representation is the party-list system . There are also differences in the level of self-governance for the sub-regions of a member state. Most states, especially the smaller ones, are unitary states ; meaning all major political power is concentrated at
1080-539: The euro . For a state to join the European Union, the prior approval of all current member states is required. In addition to enlargement by adding new countries, the EU can also expand by having territories of member states, which are outside the EU, integrate more closely (for example in respect to the dissolution of the Netherlands Antilles ) or by a territory of a member state which had previously seceded and then rejoined (see withdrawal below). There
1134-491: The state's constitution , which it does in Germany. The exact areas where the member states have given legislative competence to the Union are as follows. Every area not mentioned remains with member states. In EU terminology, the term 'competence' means 'authority or responsibility to act'. The table below shows which aspects of governance are exclusively for collective action (through the commission) and which are shared to
SECTION 20
#17327722733971188-547: The EU (sometimes referred to as supranational ) make it unique among international organisations, as it has established its own legal order which by the provisions of the founding treaties is both legally binding and supreme on all the member states (after a landmark ruling of the ECJ in 1964 ). A founding principle of the union is subsidiarity , meaning that decisions are taken collectively if and only if they cannot realistically be taken individually. Each member country appoints to
1242-417: The EU labour market . According to the Copenhagen criteria , membership of the European Union is open to any European country that is a stable, free-market liberal democracy that respects the rule of law and human rights. Furthermore, it has to be willing to accept all the obligations of membership, such as adopting all previously agreed law (the 170,000 pages of acquis communautaire ) and switching to
1296-486: The EU's style of integration as a union of states does not "emphasise sovereignty or the separation of domestic and foreign affairs [and it] has become a highly developed system for mutual interference in each other's domestic affairs, right down to beer and sausages.". However, on defence and foreign policy issues (and, pre- Lisbon Treaty , police and judicial matters) less sovereignty is transferred, with issues being dealt with by unanimity and co-operation. Very early on in
1350-579: The EU, but have certain exemptions based on their remoteness; see Overseas Countries and Territories Association . These "outermost regions" have partial application of EU law and in some cases are outside of Schengen or the EU VAT area—however they are legally within the EU. They all use the euro as their currency. Abbreviations have been used as a shorthand way of grouping countries by their date of accession. Additionally, other abbreviations have been used to refer to countries which had limited access to
1404-638: The European Commission and other member states was deployed to Greek government ministries. Some, including the President of the Euro Group Jean-Claude Juncker , stated that "the sovereignty of Greece will be massively limited." The situation of the bailed out countries (Greece, Portugal and Ireland) has been described as being a ward or protectorate of the EU with some such as the Netherlands calling for
1458-621: The European Parliament; prospective justices must be confirmed by the existing members. Historically, larger member states were granted an extra Commissioner. However, as the body grew, this right has been removed and each state is represented equally. The six largest states are also granted an Advocates General in the Court of Justice. Finally, the Governing Council of the European Central Bank includes
1512-580: The NUTS Regulation, the average population size of the regions in the respective level shall lie within the following thresholds: For non-administrative units, deviations from these population marks exist for particular geographical, socio-economic, historical, cultural or environmental circumstances, especially for islands and outermost regions. Member state of the European Union The European Union (EU)
1566-585: The States to Community, the Member States have limited their sovereign rights and have thus created a body of law which binds both their nationals and themselves...The transfer by the States from their domestic legal system to the Community legal system of the rights and obligations arising under the Treaty carries with it a permanent limitation of their sovereign rights. The question of whether Union law
1620-488: The Treaty on European Union While the member states are sovereign, the union partially follows a supranational system for those functions agreed by treaty to be shared. ("Competences not conferred upon the Union in the Treaties remain with the member states"). Previously limited to European Community matters, the practice, known as the ' community method ', is currently used in many areas of policy. Combined sovereignty
1674-404: The UK eventually withdrew from the EU on 31 January 2020. Prior to 2016, no member state had voted to withdraw. However, French Algeria , Greenland and Saint-Barthélemy did cease being part of the EU (or its predecessor) in 1962, 1985, and 2012, respectively, due to status changes. The situation of Greenland being outside the EU while still subject to an EU member state had been discussed as
Northern Croatia - Misplaced Pages Continue
1728-402: The area where goods and services subject to European public procurement legislation are to be delivered. For each EU member country, a hierarchy of three NUTS levels is established by Eurostat in agreement with each member state; the subdivisions in some levels do not necessarily correspond to administrative divisions within the country. A NUTS code begins with a two-letter code referencing
1782-463: The breach requires unanimity (excluding the state concerned), but sanctions require only a qualified majority. The state in question would still be bound by the obligations treaties and the Council acting by majority may alter or lift such sanctions. The Treaty of Nice included a preventive mechanism whereby the council, acting by majority, may identify a potential breach and make recommendations to
1836-404: The country, as abbreviated in the European Union 's Interinstitutional Style Guide. The subdivision of the country is then referred to with one number. A second or third subdivision level is referred to with another number each. Each numbering starts with 1, as 0 is used for the upper level. Where the subdivision has more than nine entities, capital letters are used to continue the numbering. Below
1890-403: The democratic secession of a European Union member state. Each state has representation in the institutions of the European Union . Full membership gives the government of a member state a seat in the Council of the European Union and European Council . When decisions are not being taken by consensus , qualified majority voting (which requires majorities both of the number of states and of
1944-527: The directly elected lower house and require its support to stay in office—the exception being Cyprus with its presidential system. Upper houses are composed differently in different member states: it can be directly elected like the Polish senate ; indirectly elected, for example, by regional legislatures like the Federal Council of Austria ; or unelected, but representing certain interest groups like
1998-437: The entire country), but are coded with the appropriate length codes levels 1, 2 and 3. The NUTS system favors existing administrative units, with one or more assigned to each NUTS level. Specific guidelines are based in population, leaving little or no role for other types of variables such as area, distance, topography, levels of jurisdiction or history, which can only be considered in (unspecified) types of special cases. From
2052-405: The exception of Zagreb , which forms a separate NUTS region . The cuisine of Northern Croatia includes dishes of a few local or regional cuisines ( Zagorje , Međimurje , Podravina ) which have their specific cooking traditions, characteristic for the area and not necessarily well known in other parts of Croatia, as well as dishes that can be found all across the country. The Međimurska gibanica
2106-418: The first provision and procedure of a member state to leave the bloc. The procedure for a state to leave is outlined in TEU Article 50 which also makes clear that "Any Member State may decide to withdraw from the Union in accordance with its own constitutional requirements". Although it calls for a negotiated withdrawal between the seceding state and the rest of the EU, if no agreement is reached two years after
2160-555: The founding treaties from participating in certain policy areas. The admission of a new state the Union is limited to liberal democracies and Freedom House ranks all EU states as being totally free electoral democracies. All but 4 are ranked at the top 1.0 rating. However, the exact political system of a state is not limited, with each state having its own system based on its historical evolution. More than half of member states—16 out of 27—are parliamentary republics , while six states are constitutional monarchies , meaning they have
2214-428: The governors of the national central banks (who may or may not be government appointed) of each euro area country. The larger states traditionally carry more weight in negotiations, however smaller states can be effective impartial mediators and citizens of smaller states are often appointed to sensitive top posts to avoid competition between the larger states. This, together with the disproportionate representation of
Northern Croatia - Misplaced Pages Continue
2268-415: The history of the EU, the unique state of its establishment and pooling of sovereignty was emphasised by the Court of Justice: By creating a Community of unlimited duration, having its own institutions, its own personality, its own legal capacity and capacity of representation on the international plane and, more particularly, real powers stemming from a limitation of sovereignty or a transfer of powers from
2322-667: The larger ones). The members of the European Parliament have been elected by universal suffrage since 1979 (before that, they were seconded from national parliaments ). The national governments appoint one member each to the European Commission , the European Court of Justice and the European Court of Auditors . Prospective Commissioners must be confirmed both by the President of the Commission and by
2376-469: The national level. 9 states allocate power to more local levels of government. Austria, Belgium and Germany are full federations, meaning their regions have constitutional autonomies. Denmark, Finland, France and the Netherlands are federacies , meaning some regions have autonomy but most do not. Spain and Italy have systems of devolution where regions have autonomy, but the national government retains
2430-464: The population they represent, but a sufficient blocking minority can veto the proposal). The Presidency of the Council of the European Union rotates among each of the member states, allowing each state six months to help direct the agenda of the EU. Similarly, each state is assigned seats in Parliament according to their population (smaller countries receiving more seats per inhabitant than
2484-500: The region have sufficient ADSL internet access, and some businesses have used fibre optics to do their business. The region has a very well maintained gas network. Northern Croatia is well connected by railway. The first railway in Croatia was built in Međimurje in 1860, then ruled by Hungary. Some of the major lines in Northern Croatia include: Railway system is of high importance in this region, particularly because it connects
2538-648: The region will meet the demands of the consumers that live there and will continue growth in the region. The availability of first-class human resources in a university in Varaždin has led to advances in software and game development. Two national public universities are operating in the region. 46°18′29″N 16°20′10″W / 46.308°N 16.336°W / 46.308; -16.336 Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics Nomenclature of Territorial Units for Statistics or NUTS ( French : Nomenclature des unités territoriales statistiques )
2592-624: The region with the regional and national capital, Zagreb . This is often consisted in traditional music from the region, primarily in Kajkavian : Drama series Gruntovčani , shot in Sigetec, Varaždin county has a plot revolved around the railway system in the region in some episodes, primarily in the episode 9, "Na probi" (On trial) and episode 10 "Ostajte ovdje" (Don't leave the home). Both of these episodes are supposedly shot in non-existent "Srednjaci" village railway station, while in reality, it
2646-450: The remaining republics, four operate a semi-presidential system , where competences are shared between the president and prime minister, while one republic operates a presidential system , where the president is head of both state and government. Parliamentary structure in member states varies: there are 15 unicameral national parliaments and 12 bicameral parliaments. The prime minister and government are usually directly accountable to
2700-629: The seceding state notifying of its intention to leave, it would cease to be subject to the treaties anyway (thus ensuring a right to unilateral withdrawal). There is no formal limit to how much time a member state can take between adopting a policy of withdrawal, and actually triggering Article 50. In a referendum in June 2016 , the United Kingdom voted to withdraw from the EU. The UK government triggered Article 50 on 29 March 2017. After an extended period of negotiation and internal political debate
2754-445: The smaller states in terms of votes and seats in parliament, gives the smaller EU states a greater power of influence than is normally attributed to a state of their size. However most negotiations are still dominated by the larger states. This has traditionally been largely through the " Franco-German motor" but Franco-German influence has diminished slightly following the influx of new members in 2004 (see G6 ). – Article 4 of
SECTION 50
#17327722733972808-534: The state to rectify it before action is taken against it as outlined above. However, the treaties do not provide any mechanism to expel a member state outright. Prior to the Lisbon Treaty , there was no provision or procedure within any of the Treaties of the European Union for a member state to withdraw from the European Union or its predecessor organisations. The Lisbon Treaty changed this and included
2862-477: The three NUTS divisions each correspond to the entire country itself. Metropolitan Cities i: ∪ of counties ; or ii: individual counties ; or iii: ∪ of districts in Greater London . [ ∪ ] NUTS regions are generally based on existing national administrative subdivisions. In countries where only one or two regional subdivisions exist, or where the population of existing subdivisions
2916-753: The three NUTS levels are local administrative units (LAUs). A similar statistical system is defined for the candidate countries and members of the European Free Trade Association , but they are not part of NUTS governed by the regulations. The current NUTS classification, dated 21 November 2016 and effective from 1 January 2018 (now updated to current members as of 2020 ), lists 92 regions at NUTS 1 , 244 regions at NUTS 2, 1215 regions at NUTS 3 level, and 99,387 local administrative units (LAUs). Not all countries have every level of division, depending on their size. For example, Luxembourg and Cyprus only have local administrative units (LAUs);
#396603