Given the relative ignorance about the actual contents of the Treaty of European Union signed in Maastricht last February, and the absence of a proper debate on the subject in Spain, such as has ...unravelled in Denmark, France and the United Kingdom, we have thought it appropriate to address the dearth of information by drawing up some of the key-note details of the treaty in dictionary form. This short compendium clarifies the meaning of a variety of technical terms such as FEDER and COPERER, it discusses a number of political issues encompassed by the treaty such as immigration or joint security policies and also examines some of the conceptual vocabulary, such as European Federalism or the Nation State, with which the treaty takes issue or, indeed, develops. After the close result of the French referendum the EC's foreign ministers meeting in New York have expressed their will not to jettison the treaty, as some had feared. However, the Germans and the British have yet to ratify the document, and the debate therefore continues in all earnestness. This dictionary aims to ensure that the arguments that are employed are based on solid facts rather than groundless fears.
