Article 7 - The principles of federal coercion

Art. 7 TEU provides a penalty procedure directed toward maintaining the foundational values of the Union (values also shared in common among the Member States), giving the EU institutions the means to ensure that any Member State respects those common values. It is a means to guarantee the principles and values mentioned in Art. 2 TEU, which represents the "homogeneity clause" of the European order. Respect for this clause is not only a condition for accession of a new Member State to the EU, as explicitly provided for in Art. 49 TEU but also a membership requirement for any State in the Union, providing mechanisms for protection that may give solutions for infringements that occur after the accession. Art. 7 TEU directly influences the effectiveness of both the principle of homogeneity in the European constitutional system and the powers of which the Union may make use vis-à-vis the Member States obviously powers to interfere in the affairs of the latter. However, such behavior is justified by the Union's task to protect its own system and, therefore, to act for the conservation, protection and security of the same.