ACouncil of EU voting, where procedure indicates a qualified majority vote, requires a double majority of at least 55% of EU member states and 65% of EU population to adopt Commission proposals. This increases to 72% of EU member states and 65% of EU population when the proposal originates from a member state.
History
France, Germany, the United Kingdom and Italy have been referred to as the "Big Four of Europe" since the interwar period (1919–1939), when the four countries signed the Four-Power Pact and the Munich Agreement.[4] Britain and France, permanent members of the League of Nations' executive council along with Italy and Japan, were involved in a policy of appeasement towards Germany. World War II (1939–1945) saw the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, France and China fighting against Germany, Italy and Japan. The defeat of the Axis powers resulted in the formation of the United Nations, where the five victorious countries of the Allied powers were granted a permanent seat in the Security Council. Germany, Italy and Japan experienced a post-war economic miracle and took part in the 1st G6 summit along with France, the United Kingdom and the United States in 1975.
Since 1945, France and Great Britain have often acted alone in defence policy matters while Germany and Italy have preferred to act within the framework of international organisations. For example, France, Germany, Italy and the UK were the EU countries represented in the Syria peace talks, but only France and the UK are directly bombing ISIS in Syria, while Germany and Italy prefer to give military aid and to send training troops.
Quint
The Quint (or NATO Quint) is an informal decision-making group consisting of five Western powers: the United States and the Big Four (France, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom).[15][16] It operates as a "directoire" of various entities such as NATO and the G7/G20.[17]
Hillman, William (30 September 1938). "Big Four of Europe Sign Munich Pact". news.google.com. The Milwaukee Sentinel. International News Service. pp.1–2.