It's not just about the flights themselves; it's what they enable people to do: to live, work and holiday in the world's biggest economic bloc and most culturally diverse continent.

The differing views on how best to solve the problem are driving cracks in the concept of a united economic bloc.

The public sector now employs a staggering one in five working adults, who constitute an economic bloc of their own.

Adding to the unease, an opposition bloc vowed to boycott the legislature in protest against what it said was vote-rigging by the authorities in last week's parliamentary poll.

The opposition bloc won 34 out of 50 seats in the parliament.

It was argued by these parties that the position had become an anachronism in the modern multi-party environment, and that the days of a united opposition bloc were gone.

The former became a neutral state, non-aligned with any political bloc.

They are scattered across different political blocs, however, making it hard for them to punch their weight.

Neither of the candidates who now go through to the runoff belong to one of the two political blocs that have governed the country since 1963.

Of the elected members, two distinct political blocs emerged.

To this end, formalised parties were formed by the main political blocs, so as to increase their bargaining power in the negotiations.

Why do these regional bloc votes seem to exist when people spread across such a bloc may have diverse musical tastes?

This apparent northern dominance, masked divisions and politicians born in the north pursued various personal and ideological agendas and did not act as a regional bloc.

Major infrastructure projects began during the 2000s in order to modernize and connect the regional bloc to other markets, facilitating both integration and trade in the region.

Regional blocs appear more interested at apportioning blame than finding solutions.

The emergent properties of this new world disorder are the formation of regional blocs and the danger that friction between them might escalate.

A trade bloc of 500m consumers has greater negotiating power than a country of 65m.

Back in 1973, we thought we were joining a prosperous trade bloc.

Amazingly, our 19billion buys us membership of the only stagnant trade bloc in the world.

Single countries, with ability to be flexible and focussed, negotiate trade deals far more quickly than trade blocs.

It came after a surprise agreement among the main world trade blocs to resume formal negotiations and order diplomatic teams back to the table.

A small nation has less clout in these negotiations than a huge trading bloc.

It puts an economic liberal at the heart of the world's largest trading bloc.

The institutions that run the world's biggest trading bloc foster democracy in new member states but are themselves undemocratic, meddling and short-sighted.

In the 1950s, when global tariffs were high, shipping costs prohibitive, travel difficult and long-distance communication expensive, a regional trading bloc made sense.

The best hope of kick-starting global growth lies within the world's largest trading bloc.

Politicians have tended to regard them as a voting bloc.

But that doesn't lead to a unified voting bloc.

I certainly don't try to pressure him with a voting bloc.

Farmers are a huge voting bloc, numbering more than 250 million.

Historically the country's underclass, they have been courted by the presidential challengers as a highly motivated voting bloc with a commitment to self-improvement.