EFTA (European Free Trade Association )

The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) is a free trade organization between four European countries that operates in parallel with – and is linked to – the European Union (EU). The EFTA was established on 3 May 1960 as a trade bloc- alternative for European states who were either unable or unwilling to join then-European Economic Community (EEC) which has now become the EU.

Today's EFTA members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, and Switzerland, of which the latter two were founding members. The initial Stockholm Convention was superseded by the Vaduz Convention, which enabled greater liberalization of trade among the member states.

GDP in millions (PPP)[2] Current members Flag State Official name Accession Population Area (km²) Capital GDP in millions (PPP)[2] GDP per capita (PPP)[2] Iceland 1 January 1970 320,000 103,000 Reykjavík 12,831 39,223 Liechtenstein Principality of Liechtenstein 1 January 1991 34,247 160.4 Vaduz 3,545 98,432 Norway Kingdom of Norway 3 May 1960 5,038,137 385,155 Oslo 265,911 53,470 Switzerland Swiss Confederation 8,000,000 41,285 Bern 363,421 45,417

Institutions EFTA is governed by the EFTA Council and serviced by the EFTA Secretariat. In addition, in connection with the EEA (European Economic Area) Agreement of 1992, two other EFTA organizations were established, the EFTA Surveillance Authority and the EFTA Court.

Locations The EFTA Secretariat is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, but also has duty stations in Brussels, Belgium and Luxembourg. The EFTA Surveillance (наблюдение) Authority has its headquarters in Brussels, Belgium (the same location as the headquarters of the European Commission), while the EFTA Court has its headquarters in Luxembourg (the same location as the headquarters of the European Court of Justice).

International relationships EFTA has several free trade agreements with non-EU countries as well as declarations on cooperation and joint workgroups to improve trade. Currently, the EFTA States have established preferential trade relations with 24 states and territories, in addition to the 28 member states of the European Union