The European Union (EU) has been established for more than 60 years, and has experienced a series of ups and downs, such as the refugee crisis and Brexit.
The rise of the European Union
On May 9, 1950, French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman proposed the establishment of an economic alliance between France and West Germany.
One year later, Belgium, France, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands established the European Coal and Steel Community (ECS).
Development of the European Union
On March 25, 1957, the six founding members of the European Coal and Steel Community signed the Treaty of Rome to establish the European Economic Community (EEC).
The EEC came into effect one year later, and its organizational structure mainly consisted of the Council of Ministers, the European Commission, and the Parliamentary Assembly of the European Council. The Parliamentary Assembly of the European Council is the subsequent European Parliament.
In 1979, the first direct universal suffrage was held for the European Parliament.
The United Kingdom, Denmark and Ireland joined the European Economic Community on January 1, 1973; Greece joined in 1981; Portugal and Spain joined in 1986; Austria, Finland and Sweden joined in 1995.
February 7, 1992 Foreign Ministers sign the Treaty of Maastricht, laying the foundation for the European single currency.
The European single market was realized in January 1993, allowing free movement of goods, people, services and capital.
On November 1, 1993, the European Economic Community was renamed the European Union.
In March 1995, the Schengen Agreement (Schengen) came into force, allowing EU citizens to pass through the internal borders of the Schengen area without having to present a passport. The UK and Ireland chose not to join the Schengen Agreement.
Euro circulation and EU expansion
On January 1, 2002, Euro banknotes and coins replaced the currencies of 12 EU countries and were officially circulated. The UK, Denmark and Sweden chose not to join.
On May 1, 2004, the EU expanded to 25 members, adding Cypress, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia.
Bulgaria and Romania joined in 2007, and Croatia officially became the 28th member of the EU in 2013.
● Crisis
In May and June 2005, France and the Netherlands held referendums to reject plans to introduce a constitutional treaty in the EU that would set out free market norms.
In December 2009, the Lisbon Treaty came into force, which, in addition to amending the organizational structure of the EU, gave the European Parliament and the parliaments of the member states greater powers.
In November 2009, after the Greek Finance Minister announced a sharp increase in the fiscal deficit, the European sovereign debt crisis erupted in the then 16-nation Eurozone.
First Greece, then Ireland, Portugal, Spain and Cypress all successively asked the EU and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for help, and the EU and IMF imposed strict conditions.
With the end of the debt crisis, the refugee crisis followed. According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), hundreds of thousands of migrants have flocked to Europe’s borders seeking asylum, reaching a peak of about one million in 2015. EU leaders have still failed to reach a consensus on dealing with the refugee issue.
● Britain’s exit from the European Union
On June 23, 2016, the UK held a referendum on leaving the European Union, with 52% of people supporting Brexit. Brexit was delayed for three years because the terms of the break-up could not be negotiated, and was postponed three times from the original departure date of March 29, 2019 to January 31, 2020.
The impasse prompted Prime Minister Boris Johnson to throw out the proposal to hold a general election on December 12 last year, and his Conservative Party won a landslide victory, and the Brexit agreement was finally passed successfully by Parliament.
At 23:00 GMT on January 31, 2020 (7:00 a.m. Taiwan time on February 1), the UK will be the first country to leave the EU.
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