Levels of power · Level 7 of 10

Regional blocs and supranational bodies

Groups of countries that pool some decisions: the European Union, the Council of Europe and its European Court of Human Rights, the African Union, ASEAN and Mercosur. Their treaties, courts and trade rules bind members, and in the EU's case its laws apply directly.

What this level decides

• Trade rules and tariffs between members and with the rest of the world
• Laws and regulations that apply across members (EU)
• Rulings on human rights cases against member states (European Court of Human Rights)
• Shared budgets and funds

Key figures

How it works

The European Parliament says it is made up of 720 Members elected in the 27 member states of the European Union. The budget is agreed with the Council of the EU. For the 2026 budget, Parliament reports that a deal with member states was reached on 15 November 2025, Parliament adopted it by 419 votes to 185 with 53 abstentions, and the Council endorsed it on the following Monday.

The 2026 EU budget is €192.8 billion in commitments and €190.1 billion in payments, according to the European Parliament. It says more than 93% goes directly into EU programmes supporting people and projects in member states, and that the annual budget, which serves 27 countries and 450 million Europeans, averages €160 to €200 billion over 2021 to 2027. The Parliament notes an unexpected €4.2 billion rise in NextGenerationEU borrowing costs in 2026.

Citizens have formal routes into EU decisions. The European Parliament says a European Citizens' Initiative needs organisers from at least seven member states and one million signatures from at least seven EU countries within a year, with a minimum number in each country. The Commission's Public Consultations and Feedback portal invites views on initiatives. The EU Transparency Register lists organisations that seek to influence EU policy, with more than 12,000 registered.

The African Union describes itself as a continental body of 55 member states, launched in July 2002 in Durban as the successor to the Organisation of African Unity. Its decision-making organs include the Assembly of Heads of State and Government, the Executive Council, the Permanent Representatives Committee, the Peace and Security Council and the African Union Commission. Its strategic framework is Agenda 2063.

How to have a say

1. Start or support a European Citizens' Initiative
2. Answer European Commission consultations on upcoming EU policies
3. Use the Have Your Say hub for consultations, citizens' initiatives and the Citizens' Engagement Platform
4. Check the EU Transparency Register to see which interests are lobbying EU institutions
5. Find your Members of the European Parliament and how to contact them

The records you can check

• How each government voted in the Council of the EU
• European Parliament roll-call votes
• European Court of Human Rights judgments by country
• The EU Transparency Register of lobbyists

Official registers and data

• EU Transparency Register
  Database of organisations and individuals seeking to influence EU policy and decision-making.
• EU countries (European Union portal)
  Official list of the 27 member states with accession, euro and Schengen dates.
• The Members of the European Parliament
  Parliament's description of its 720 Members and how to find them.
• MEPs adopt 2026 EU budget (European Parliament)
  Totals, changes and vote count for the 2026 EU budget.
• Have Your Say (European Commission)
  Portal for consultations and feedback on EU initiatives.
• About the African Union
  Official overview of the AU's members, organs and Agenda 2063.

The bodies at this level

• African Union

  The African Union is a continental body of 55 member states covering every country in Africa, launched in 2002 as successor to the Organisation of African Unity. The AU says its Assembly of Heads of State and Government is its supreme policy and decision-making organ, the 15-member Peace and Security Council is its standing body for preventing and resolving conflicts, and the African Union Commission in Addis Ababa runs day-to-day business.

• Association of Southeast Asian Nations

  ASEAN is a regional organisation of 11 South-East Asian countries, founded in Bangkok on 8 August 1967. Under the ASEAN Charter, the ASEAN Summit of heads of state or government is the supreme policy-making body, and decisions are based on consultation and consensus. The Secretariat in Jakarta is funded by equal annual contributions from every member.

• Council of Europe and the European Court of Human Rights

  The Council of Europe is a pan-European organisation of 46 member states, separate from the EU, set up in 1949 to promote human rights, democracy and the rule of law. Its European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg rules on complaints that a state has breached the European Convention on Human Rights; the Convention says states must abide by final judgments, and the Council of Europe's Committee of Ministers supervises how they are carried out. Individuals can apply to the Court directly.

• European Central Bank

  The European Central Bank is the central bank of the euro area. The ECB says its main task is to maintain price stability, that is to safeguard the value of the euro, and that it also has specific tasks in banknotes, banking supervision, statistics, macroprudential policy and financial stability. The Governing Council, which takes the key decisions including setting interest rates, has 27 members: the six members of the Executive Board and the 21 governors of the euro area national central banks. The Executive Board implements monetary policy and runs day-to-day business; its members are appointed by the European Council by qualified majority. Bulgaria became the euro area's 21st member on 1 January 2026. The ECB reports to the European Parliament through hearings and an annual report.

• European Court of Human Rights

  The European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg is the court of the Council of Europe that rules on applications alleging breaches of the European Convention on Human Rights by member states. It has one judge for each state; the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe elects them from lists of three candidates proposed by each state, for a single non-renewable term of nine years. Cases are handled by single judges, three-judge Committees, seven-judge Chambers and a 17-judge Grand Chamber. In 2025 the Court says it allocated 31,800 applications, delivered 914 judgments, and cut its pending caseload from 60,350 to 53,450, the lowest since March 2005. Mattias Guyomar of France has been President since 30 May 2025.

• European Union (incl. Parliament, Commission, Council)

  The European Union is a union of 27 countries that make shared laws, run a single market and agree a common budget. Under the EU treaties, the directly elected European Parliament (720 MEPs) and the Council of the EU (government ministers) jointly pass laws and the budget, while the European Commission, one Commissioner per country, proposes laws, executes the budget and checks that EU law is applied. EU regulations are binding and directly applicable in every member state.

• Gulf Cooperation Council

  The Gulf Cooperation Council, formally the Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf, is a regional organisation of six states: Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Its charter was signed in Abu Dhabi on 25 May 1981 after a foreign ministers' meeting in Riyadh on 4 February 1981, and its Secretariat General is in Riyadh. The charter names the Supreme Council of heads of state as the highest authority, meeting once a year with a rotating presidency, a Ministerial Council of foreign ministers meeting every three months, and the Secretariat General. The Supreme Council appoints the Secretary-General for a renewable three-year term, and substantive decisions require unanimity. The GCC says its aims are coordination, integration and interconnection among members in all fields, leading to unity. Jasem Mohamed Albudaiwi is Secretary General.

• Mercosur

  Mercosur (the Southern Common Market) is a South American trade bloc created by the Treaty of Asunción, signed on 26 March 1991 by Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay; Bolivia became a full State Party on 7 August 2024. Under the Ouro Preto Protocol its top body, the Common Market Council of foreign and economy ministers, takes decisions by consensus with all States Parties present, and those rules are binding on members. Colombia's foreign ministry records Venezuela as suspended since August 2017.

• Shanghai Cooperation Organisation

  The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation is a Eurasian intergovernmental organisation of ten member states: Belarus, China, India, Iran, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Pakistan, Russia, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan. It was established in Shanghai on 15 June 2001, its Charter was signed in St Petersburg on 7 June 2002, and India and Pakistan became full members in 2017. The SCO says it is built on the Shanghai Spirit of mutual respect, non-interference and non-use of force, and that it does not have the attributes of a defence alliance. Its Council of Heads of State is the highest decision-making body and meets yearly; its permanent bodies are the Secretariat in Beijing and the Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure in Tashkent. Russian and Chinese are the official languages. Pakistan holds the 2026 to 2027 chairmanship after the Bishkek summit of 1 September 2026.

Up and down the ladder

Above: The UN and global treaty bodies. Below: National government.

Common questions

What does regional blocs and supranational bodies decide?

Trade rules and tariffs between members and with the rest of the world; Laws and regulations that apply across members (EU); Rulings on human rights cases against member states (European Court of Human Rights); Shared budgets and funds.

Which records show what regional blocs and supranational bodies do?

How each government voted in the Council of the EU; European Parliament roll-call votes; European Court of Human Rights judgments by country; The EU Transparency Register of lobbyists.

How many countries are in the EU?

The European Union's official portal lists 27 member states and records when each joined the EU, the euro area and the Schengen area. The European Parliament says its 720 Members are elected across those 27 states. Countries are listed by year of entry, from the founding states in 1958 onwards.

How many MEPs are there?

The European Parliament says it is made up of 720 Members elected in the 27 member states of the European Union. The Parliament's Members page describes how its Members are organised and how to find them. The EU's official portal lists the 27 member states, from the founding states of 1958 onwards.

How big is the EU budget?

The European Parliament reports that the EU's 2026 budget is €192.8 billion in commitments and €190.1 billion in payments, adopted in November 2025 by 419 votes to 185 with 53 abstentions. It adds that the annual EU budget is relatively small, averaging €160 to €200 billion over 2021 to 2027.

How can citizens propose an EU law?

Through a European Citizens' Initiative. The European Parliament says organisers must include at least seven EU citizens resident in at least seven member states. They have one year to collect the support of one million people from at least seven EU countries, with a minimum number of signatories in each country.

What is the EU Transparency Register?

It is a database listing organisations, associations, groups and self-employed individuals who carry out activities to influence EU policy and decision-making. It is designed to show the public which interests are represented, by whom and on whose behalf. More than 12,000 interest representatives are now registered, according to its homepage.

How many members does the African Union have?

The African Union says it is a continental body consisting of the 55 member states that make up the countries of the African continent. It was officially launched in July 2002 in Durban, South Africa, as a successor to the Organisation of African Unity, which operated from 1963 to 1999.

Sources

• EU countries - European Union, read 23 October 2026
• The Members - European Parliament, read 23 October 2026
• MEPs adopt 2026 EU budget: focus on competitiveness, research and security - European Parliament, read 23 October 2026
• Citizens' initiative - European Parliament, read 23 October 2026
• Home - Transparency register - European Union, read 23 October 2026
• Have Your Say - European Commission, read 23 October 2026
• Public Consultations - European Commission, read 23 October 2026
• About the African Union - African Union, read 23 October 2026