European Council

is the EU 's highest political body, based in Brussels, responsible for setting the EU' s general policy orientations and priorities. Despite the fact that the European Council is responsible for setting the political agenda, we do not place the European Council among the legislatures, as it does not negotiate or adopt EU legislation. The European Council addresses complex and sensitive issues that cannot be resolved at lower levels, sets the EU's common foreign and security policy and nominates some candidates for senior positions in the EU, such as the European Central Bank and the European Commission.

The European Council consists of:

- Heads of State or Government of the EU Member States (27),
- the President of the European Council, and
- President of the European Commission.

The European Council operates in the form of quarterly meetings. When discussing foreign affairs, the meetings are also attended by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy. Since 2019, the President of the European Council, for a term of two and a half years, with the possibility of a one-time extension, has been appointed Charles Michel.