Editing Flag of Europe (section)

==Derivative designs==
The design of the European flag has been used in a variation, such as that of the Council of Europe mentioned above, and also to a greater extent such as the [[flag of the Western European Union]] (WEU; now defunct), which uses the same colours and the stars but has a number of stars based on membership and in a semicircle rather than a circle. It is also [[defacement (flag)|defaced]] with the initials of the former [[Western European Union]] in two languages.<ref>{{cite web|title=Western European Union |publisher=[[Flags of the World (website)|Flags of the World]] |url=http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/eu%5Eweu.html |access-date=11 February 2009}}</ref>

The [[European Parliament]] used its own flag from 1973, but never formally adopted it. It fell out of use with the adoption of the twelve-star flag by the Parliament in 1983. The flag followed the yellow and blue colour scheme however instead of twelve stars there were the letters EP and PE (initials of the European Parliament in the six [[languages of the European Union|community languages]] at the time) surrounded by a [[wreath]].<ref>{{cite web |title=European Parliament |publisher=[[Flags of the World (website)|Flags of the World]] |date=28 October 2004 |url=http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/eu_ep.html |access-date=4 August 2007}}</ref> Sometime later, the Parliament chose to use a logo consisting of a stylised [[hemicycle]] and the EU flag at the bottom right.

The [[flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina]], imposed by [[High Representative for Bosnia and Herzegovina|High Representative]] [[Carlos Westendorp]] after the country's parliament failed to agree on a design, is reminiscent of the symbolism of the EU flag, using the same blue and yellow colours; also, the stars (although of a different number and colour) are a direct reference to those of the European flag.<ref name=BandH>{{cite web|title=New flag imposed on Bosnians|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/53480.stm|website=BBC News|access-date=6 April 2017|archive-date=15 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180615030346/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/53480.stm|url-status=dead}}
{{cite web |title=Bosnia and Herzegovina – The 1998 Flag Change – Westendorp Commission – The Choice |publisher=[[Flags of the World (website)|Flags of the World]] |url=http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/flags/ba-fccho.html |access-date=11 February 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080430140116/http://www.crwflags.com/fotw/Flags/ba-fccho.html |archive-date=30 April 2008 }}</ref>

Likewise, [[Kosovo]] uses blue, yellow and stars in [[flag of Kosovo|its flag]], which has been mocked as a "none too subtle nod to the flag of the European Union, which is about to become Kosovo's new best friend as it takes over protector status from the United Nations".<ref name="RoK">{{cite news |title=Kosovo's fiddly new flag|date=18 February 2008|url=https://www.economist.com/blogs/certainideasofeurope/2008/02/kosovos_fiddly_new_flag.cfm|newspaper=The Economist|access-date=11 February 2009}}{{cite web|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/3555196/Kosovo-will-need-more-than-a-new-flag.html |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/comment/3555196/Kosovo-will-need-more-than-a-new-flag.html |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live|title=Kosovo will need more than a new flag|last=Quetteville|first=Harry de|date=19 February 2008|website=The Daily Telegraph|access-date=12 December 2017}}{{cbignore}}{{cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/flag-of-Kosovo|title=flag of Kosovo|website=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=12 December 2017}}</ref>

The [[flag of the Brussels-Capital Region]] (introduced in 2016) consists of a yellow iris with a white outline upon a blue background. Its colours are based on the colours of the Flag of Europe, because Brussels is considered the unofficial capital of the EU.<ref>{{cite web|title=Un nouveau look pour la région Bruxelles-capitale|url=http://www.brusselslife.be/fr/article/un-nouveau-look-pour-la-region-de-bruxelles-capitale#!|website=brusselslife.be|access-date=23 December 2016|quote=[Sander Vermeulen ajoute :] "Quant aux couleurs, elles rappellent celles du drapeau de l'Union européenne dont Bruxelles est la Capitale"|language=fr}}</ref><ref name=BN>{{cite news |title=Gewest gaat voor nieuwe vlag met hartjeslogo |trans-title=Region goes for new flag with hearts logo |url=http://www.brusselnieuws.be/nl/nieuws/gewest-gaat-voor-nieuwe-vlag-met-hartjeslogo | newspaper=brusselsnieuws.be |location=Brussels |date=17 December 2014 |access-date=1 January 2015|language=nl}}</ref>

<gallery mode="packed" widths="150" heights="100">
File:Flag of the Brussels-Capital Region.svg|The blue and yellow colours of the Brussels flag are those of the [[European Union]], of which Brussels is the [[Brussels and the European Union|''de facto'' capital city]].<ref name=BN />
File:Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg|alt=The flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina was partly based on the European flag|The flag of [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] was partly based on the European flag.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/53480.stm|title=BBC News &#124; Europe &#124; New flag imposed on Bosnians|access-date=16 June 2017|archive-date=15 June 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180615030346/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/53480.stm|url-status=dead}}</ref>
File:Logo of the Council of Europe (no lettering).svg|Logo of the [[Council of Europe]]
File:Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community 6 Star Version.svg|[[Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community]] (1958–1972)
File:Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community 9 Star Version.svg|[[Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community]] (1973–1980)
File:Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community 10 Star Version.svg|[[Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community]] (1981–1985)
File:Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community 12 Star Version.svg|[[Flag of the European Coal and Steel Community]] (1986–2002)
File:Flag of Kosovo.svg|The flag of Kosovo was partly based on the European flag.
File:Flag of the Western European Union (1993-1995).svg|[[Flag of the Western European Union]] (1993–1995)
File:Flag of the Western European Union.svg|[[Flag of the Western European Union]] (1995–2011)
File:Flag of the Assembly of the Western European Union.svg|Flag of the Assembly of the Western European Union
File:Flag of the European Parliament (1973-1983).svg|Flag of the European Parliament (1973–1983)
File:Flag of the European Maritime Safety Agency.svg|Flag of the [[European Maritime Safety Agency]]
File:Flag of EMCDDA.svg|Flag of the [[European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction]] (until 2024)
File:Organic-Logo.svg|EU emblem for [[organic certification|certification]] of organic agricultural products 
</gallery>

===Heraldry===
{{See also|Armorial of Europe}}

The [[coat of arms]] of the [[chairman of the European Union Military Committee]] (CEUMC), the highest-ranking officer within the EU's [[Common Security and Defence Policy]] (CSDP), depicts the European emblem as a coat of arms, i.e. emblazoned on an [[Escutcheon (heraldry)|escutcheon]]. In heraldic terms, this makes the European flag is the [[banner of arms]], i.e. the flag form of this coat of arms. In English [[blazon]], the arms is ''Azure, a circle of 12 mullets or, their points not touching''.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Publications Office – Interinstitutional Style Guide – Annex A1 – Graphics guide to the European emblem|url=https://publications.europa.eu/code/en/en-5000100.htm|access-date=2021-12-28|website=publications.europa.eu}}</ref>

Several EU publications related to the CSDP generally, and its prospective development as a defence arm, have also displayed the European emblem in this manner, albeit as a graphical design element rather than an official symbol.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/euco-sibiu-towards_a_european_defence_union_0.pdf|title=European Commission|access-date=14 August 2019|archive-date=29 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190629122220/https://ec.europa.eu/commission/sites/beta-political/files/euco-sibiu-towards_a_european_defence_union_0.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

<gallery mode="packed" widths="150px" heights="150px">
File:Informal meeting of defence ministers (FAC). Arrivals Michail Kostarakos (36892148436).jpg|Chairman [[Michail Kostarakos]] wearing the heraldic badge
File:Coat of arms of Europe.svg|Heraldic badge
File:EUBAM logo.svg|Moldovan and Ukrainian flags displayed as [[supporter]]s, symbolising the [[European Union Border Assistance Mission to Moldova and Ukraine|EU's border assistance mission]] since 2005
File:EU Roma Musei Capitolini close-up crop.jpg|The European emblem emblazoned on a chair at the occasion of the 2004 signing of the [[European Union|European Constitution]] in Rome
File:Blue Eiffel Tower 00003 (2744637971).jpg|The European emblem emblazoned on the [[Eiffel Tower]] in 2008
File:European Court of Human Rights, courtroom, 2014 (cropped).JPG|The European emblem emblazoned on the carpet in the [[European Court of Human Rights]]
</gallery>