June 1, 2010 
Author: Luigi Moccia
Abstract: The evolutionary dynamics set in motion since the beginnings of the integration process for an ever closer union among the peoples of Europe, although still far from reaching the goal of the federation of Europe, moves along the direction of empowering the Union’s political and institutional structure and character as an autonomous community of both states and citizens, “founded on the indivisible, universal values of human dignity, freedom, equality and solidarity”, so defined in the preamble of the Charter of fundamental rights of the Union. From this perspective, the central tenet of the paper is that a major and most fruitful integrative factor, of both theoretical value and practical effect, which sets the link between constitutionalisation and democratic legitimation of European Union is (should be) represented by the citizenship of the Union or, in a more emphatic and symbolic way, the European citizenship: being a new kind of citizenship, not referring any longer to a state (territorial) legal order but to an area (including member states territories) without internal frontiers (the so-called area of freedom, security and justice), where European fellow citizens could (as a rule of principle tolerating but a few and limited exceptions) freely move, reside, work, do business and so forth, in absence of constraints and of any form of discrimination on grounds of nationality.
Keywords: Charter of fundamental rights, citizens, European citizenship, EU, Lisabon Treaty.