The European Council is one of the EU’s seven official institutions. The Council symbolises the highest level of political co-operation between the EU countries. It officially gained the status of an EU institution after the Treaty of Lisbon in 2007.
The role of the European Council is to set the political directions and priorities of the European Union. It does not negotiate, adopt or pass laws.
The Council deals with complex or sensitive issues that cannot be resolved at lower levels. It sets the EU’s standard foreign and security policy. It also holds the power to appoint candidates to specific high-profile EU-level roles, such as the ECB or European Central Bank and the Commission. The European Council comprises the European Council president, the European Commission president, and heads of the governments from each EU country.
The meetings are convened and chaired by the president, who is elected every two and a half years. The meetings of the European Council are usually held in the Europa building in Brussels, and the current president is Charles Michel, the former prime minister of Belgium.
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