SINCE ITS CREATION IN 1957, THE EU HAS GROWN FROM 6 TO 27 COUNTRIES. THESE COUNTRIES JOINED FORCES TO BUILD A BETTER FUTURE TOGETHER. WHICH COUNTRIES ARE MEMBERS OF THE EU AND WHEN DID THEY JOIN? IN THIS CHAPTER YOU WILL LEARN HOW THE EU BECAME WHAT IT IS TODAY AND WHAT MAKES IT UNIQUE.

WHAT IS THE EUROPEAN UNION?

EU Member States

The European Union is a unique partnership between 27 European countries, known as Member States, or EU countries. Together they cover much of the European continent. The EU is home to around 447 million people, which is around 6 % of the world’s population. Citizens of the EU countries are also EU citizens.

EU official languages

European values

The EU treaties contain the rules that guide the work of the EU. They are amended from time to time, for example when new countries join or when there are changes to how the EU works. The most recent treaty is the Lisbon Treaty, which was signed in the Portuguese capital in 2007.

Find out more about the EU treaties: europa.eu/!gy77mf

The Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union came into force with the Lisbon Treaty. It set out the rights and freedoms that all people living in the EU enjoy, such as personal, economic and social rights. To reflect modern society, the charter includes newer fundamental rights, such as data protection and guarantees on bioethics. It also includes specific provisions on the rights of under-18s, ensuring that children’s rights are part of the human rights that the EU and its Member States are obliged to comply with and protect.

Find out more about the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU: https://fra.europa.eu/en/eu-charter and the EU Strategy on the Rights of the Child: https://ec.europa.eu/info/policies/justice-and-fundamental-rights/rights-child_en

From 6 to 27 EU countries

The EU is made up of very different countries. The EU country with the largest population is Germany, which has around 83 million inhabitants, while the smallest, Malta, has 500 000 inhabitants. In the EU, people speak different languages which use one of three different alphabets (Latin, Greek and Cyrillic). There are different traditions, cultures, foods and festivals in each country.

How did it all begin?

After two destructive world wars in the first half of the twentieth century (1914–1918 and 1939–1945), people were determined that nothing like that should ever be allowed to happen again.

Between 1945 and 1950, some European politicians, including Robert Schuman, Konrad Adenauer, Alcide De Gasperi and Winston Churchill, began the process of creating the European Union we live in today. Their vision was to unite European countries economically and politically in order to secure lasting peace and prosperity.

On 9 May 1950, France’s Foreign Minister, Robert Schuman, proposed merging European production of coal and steel. At the time, these were the raw materials used for war – coal as an energy resource, and steel for weapons and machinery. By pooling their production, no one country could secretly arm itself against the others. Following this proposal, the European Coal and Steel Community came into being in 1952. It was founded by six neighbouring countries – Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands – and laid the foundations for the EU we know today.

Building on the European Coal and Steel Community

A few years later, the six founding countries decided to extend their cooperation to other economic sectors. The Treaty of Rome was signed in 1957, establishing the European Economic Community, and came into force in 1958. Its initial aim was to foster trade and further economic integration between the participating countries.

New members

In 1973, Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom (*) joined the European Economic Community. A few years later, with the end of right-wing dictatorships in southern Europe, three countries became eligible to apply for membership. The first of these was Greece, which joined in 1981. Portugal and Spain followed in 1986. In 1993, the European Union was created and Austria, Finland and Sweden joined 2 years later. This brought the EU’s membership to 15.

Soon after the Second World War, Europe was split into east and west by the ‘iron curtain’ as the 40-year-long Cold War began. The Berlin Wall was a symbol of this division as it split the city of Berlin in two. After the fall of communism in 1989, the formerly communist central and eastern European countries started a process of democratisation and applied to join the EU.

In 2004, eight countries from central and eastern Europe joined the EU: Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia. In the same year, the Mediterranean islands of Cyprus and Malta also became members. In 2007, Bulgaria and Romania joined, followed by Croatia in 2013.

The addition of new EU members has expanded the common market and helped maintain peace and prosperity in Europe. Any new member must be prepared to sign up to the treaties and take on board the full body of EU law. It must respect the EU’s values, such as the principles of democracy, the rule of law and respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms.

Beyond its own borders, the EU also maintains strong relationships with neighbouring countries. The European neighbourhood policy supports the security, stability and prosperity of the countries to the immediate east and south of the EU. In addition, the EU’s enlargement policy covers potential new members. Beyond the ‘neighbourhood’ region, the EU’s global relations are usually based on trade deals, partnerships and multilateral cooperation.

Nobel Peace Prize

The EU was set up to secure lasting peace among its members. Since its establishment, violent internal conflicts and opportunities for war to break out between Europeans have been greatly reduced. In recognition of its work for peace, democracy and human rights in Europe and around the world, the European Union was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2012. It decided to donate the EUR 930 000 prize money – plus a further EUR 930 000 from the EU itself – to children who are denied the chance to grow up in peace.