The countries of the European Union united as a result of the integration processes in Europe that began after the end of the Second World War. Such a structure was supposed to help the restoration of Europe and promote the peaceful coexistence of the peoples living in it. This concept was first voiced by Winston Churchill in 1946. After that, it took almost 50 years for the idea to become a reality, and in 1992 the creation of the European Union was officially approved.
Today, EU countries have common institutions that share some of their sovereign powers. This allows, without violating the principles of democracy, to make decisions at the European level on certain issues affecting the mutual interests of all participating States. The EU countries have a common currency and a common market allowing the free movement of people, services, capital and goods. The entire territory of the member states of the Union is called the Schengen area. Thus, the Schengen countries provide their citizens, as well as citizens of several states claiming EU membership, with the opportunity to freely move around this territory without the need for additional visas.
Since all EU countries are equal members of the organization, the official and working languages of the European Union are the languages of all its member countries. Since several states have the same language, a total of 21 official languages have been adopted in the Union.
The decision to create a single currency was made in 1992. And in 2002, the EU countries finally began to use single monetary units, which replaced the national currency of each member state.
The European Union also has its own official symbols: the flag and the anthem. The flag is an image of twelve gold stars placed in a circle on a blue background. The number 12 has nothing to do with the number of participating countries, but represents absolute perfection. The circle is a symbol of the unification of states. The blue background reflects the idea of a peaceful sky over the heads of all European peoples.
As for the anthem, it was based on the music from Ludwig van Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, which he wrote in 1823, namely “Ode to Joy”. This composition reflects the idea of unification and fraternization of peoples, which was fully and completely supported by the great composer. Thus, today, in the universal language of music without words, the European Anthem conveys to the listener the ideals of freedom, peace and solidarity that are fundamental to all of Europe.
EU Member States
The following states stood at the origins of the establishment of the European Union: Germany, France, Belgium, Italy, Luxembourg andNetherlands. Later, other countries joined the organization: Great Britain, Denmark, Ireland, Greece, Portugal, Spain, Austria, Sweden, Finland. In 2004, a number of states joined the EU: the Czech Republic, Cyprus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, M alta, Slovenia, Slovakia and Hungary. In 2007, Bulgaria and Romania also joined the ranks of the participating countries. In 2012, Croatia became the first country in the former Yugoslavia to join the EU. Also today, several states have the status of a candidate for membership in this organization.
