Abstract:

The idea of European Union (EU), of which the traces can be pursued historically back to the 14th century, from the 1950s when the formal foundations of the Union was laid, up until today is based on the same aim: establishing a common market between member states, free of obstacles to 'free movement of goods, persons, services and capital'. In the pursuit of its basic aim, the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU) prohibits certain types of discrimination, especially any discrimination on grounds of nationality prohibited by Article 18 of the TFEU. The EU Commission, attaches special importance to the studies over the prohibition of nationality discrimination by setting this principle as one of the core principles underlying all Union policies. With the studies that have picked up speed in recent times, the aim of the EU has been stated to be achieving a deeper and a broader community, which would constitute a union not only consisting of an economic alliance. The European Court of Justice (the ECJ or the Court) is, however, with no regard to the consistency in the application of the non-discrimination provisions. In some cases, the alleged discrimination is eminently strived to be abolished,whereas in others, particularly the ones in which the economic benefits are at stake, the Court does not refrain from discriminatory application. The aim of this study is not only to examine the concept of 'discrimination' and its effects, but also to expose the somewhat 'twisted' approach of the ECJ, towards this problem, resulting in the prevalence of discrimination within the Union, in spite of the distinct articles contained in the TFEU. Meanwhile, this research aims to examine this 'corruption' comprehensively and produce some theories regarding the reasons behind discrimination in the EU and its continued existence.

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