This was the second phase of the project initiated in 1999 entitled "The European Union after the revision of Maastricht: the Treaty of Amsterdam". The research was conducted in collaboration with the IDI of the University of Rome "La Sapienza" and aimed to trace the evolution of the EU's international role after the revisions made to the Treaty of Amsterdam in the economic, political and security sectors. The methodological approach analyzed the articles of the Treaty of Amsterdam, their genesis and, above all, their impact on the EU's modus operandi in the world.

The aim of this study, carried out in collaboration with the Johann Wolfgang Goethe-Universitaet Frankfurt, was to analyze the rules relative to the institution of the European Monetary Union and its functioning, particularly the problems posed by the creation of a single European currency. The consequences of those phenomena on the participation of the EU in international finantial/monetary institutions, as well as on the internal legal orders of member states, in particular Germany and Italy, was also assessed.

Carried out in collaboration with CeSPI, this project analysed three aspects of European security: institutional problems, emblematic cases of implementation of the common foreign and security policy (CFSP) and the common European security and defence policy (CESDP), and the role of Italy towards the CFSP, before and after Nice. The project, which involved various foreign and Italian experts, included the publication of a final report: "Il ruolo internazionale dell'Unione europea", edited by Rosa Balfour and Ettore Greco, Roma, Artistic&Publishing Company, 2003, 372 p.

As part of TEPSA, the IAI participated in an international project focussing on comparative analysis of the impact on European Union member countries of economic policies managed directly by the Council of Ministers (Ecofin) with respect to the general indications and guidelines for employment policies laid down by the European Council. Periodic questionnaires were sent to "reporters" of various nationalities who produced national reports. The results of the project, including working papers, national reports and articles, are available through the project homepage.

The IAI undertook a series of activities regarding the Italian Presidency of the European Union (July-December 2003). These included an international conference held in the spring on issues of institutional reform and the international role of the Union; the distribution of continuously updated information on initiatives undertaken by the Italian Presidency through its website Europa2004.it ; a series of meetings and round table discussions to promote the Italian public debate on European policies; essays and analyses on topics pertaining to the competence of the Presidency.

CONVEU -- a project supported by the European Commission as part of the PRINCE programme -- started in September 2002 and ended in June 2003. The project involved a network of eight institutes coordinated by the Stiftung Wissenschaft und Politik (SWP) in Berlin. Its aim was to analyse the decisive transition from the third and final phase of the Convention on the Future of Europe to the launching of the intergovernmental conference in 2003-2004.

This year-long international project aimed to promote public debate at the European level on the political and institutional future of the European Union. This objective was pursued through a panEuropean network of research institutes headed by TEPSA; a series of conferences in various European countries including Italy; questionnaires to monitor the institutional debate underway in EU member countries and candidates for membership (Convention Watch); public opinion polls (Convention Barometer); a web page reporting on the above activities.

Launched in 2001, this multi-year program examined issues pertaining to institutional reform of the European Union in the light of enlargement to central and southern Europe and developments in the European constitutional debate. Particular attention was focussed on the results of the European Convention and on prospects for the following intergovernmental conference on reform of the treaties.

Bilateral relations between Italy and France are going through a delicate and important phase. The intensive integration between several Italian and French economic sectors (energy, insurance, finance, banking, air transport, military shipbuilding, microelectronics), the considerable transalpine presence in the Italian economy, along with the competitive aspects that derive from this situation, make for a series of great changes.