Today, 10 new members have joined the EU. Probably the most important event since the fall of the Berlin Wall. We should all welcome the new members.
Day of welcome for EU newcomers
The EU is now the world’s largest trading bloc
Leaders from the EU’s 25 member states are taking part in celebrations, after a night of festivities heralded its historic expansion.
The 15 old members welcomed in Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia at midnight.
The focus is now on Ireland, holder of the EU presidency, where a flag-raising ceremony is to take place.
Irish PM Bertie Ahern “extended the hand of friendship” to the new members.
Speaking at Dublin Castle, where he was to begin the day’s events at a prayer ceremony, Mr Ahern hailed a “day of hope and opportunity”.
The bloc’s expansion was the “closure of one chapter in European history and the opening of another” he said.
European Commission President Romano Prodi, also at Dublin Castle, said it was an “historic and joyous day”.
Joy and uncertainty
With a population of 455m, the EU now is the world’s biggest trading bloc.
ENLARGEMENT NUMBERS
10 new countries (up to 25)
74 million people (up to 455m)
444bn euro of extra GDP
(up to 9,613bn)
738,573 sq km of territory
(up to 4m sq km)
Key facts on new states
How much the EU costs
Hundreds of thousands packed city squares in the newcomer states to watch fireworks and hear Beethoven’s Ode to Joy – the EU’s official anthem.
The BBC’s Tim Franks says some enthusiasts are describing the enlargement as a millennial event, comparable to the creation of great empires.
Many of the 10 new members are poor with young institutions of state and they see the promise of Europe-wide stability and eventual enrichment.
Reporters’ log
The night in pictures
European press jubilant
This is a hugely significant day for Europe, our correspondent says, but it is nowhere near the end of the story.
In the existing member states, there is more uncertainty over immigration, over the new balance of forces within the EU and over whom the club should admit next.
Ireland has mounted its biggest security operation since Pope John Paul II visited in 1979 in preparation for the celebrations.
More than 5,000 officers will be on duty this weekend and 1,000 of those will be positioned in riot gear at four different parts of the city to police anti-capitalist protests.
Eight of the new members are former communist states, joining the Western club only 15 years after most of them emerged from years of Soviet domination. Some were not even separate countries until just over a decade ago.
Now all their governments have satisfied Brussels that their economies, legal systems and democracies are ready for EU membership.
‘No war again’
The other two new members – Malta and Cyprus – are Mediterranean islands.
But Cypriot membership is being overshadowed by the exclusion of the island’s Turkish Cypriot part, following an inconclusive referendum on reunification a week ago.
One of the fathers of European reunification, former German Chancellor Helmut Kohl, spoke through tears when he addressed thousands at a ceremony in the German town of Zittau, which borders both Poland and the Czech Republic.
By: Flood - 12th May 2004 at 12:05
Oh dear. Argueing again…:D:D:D
Flood.™
By: Snapper - 12th May 2004 at 06:44
“His hand isn’t big enough, that’s why he moved”
Au contraire. I was still searching for any clue as to trhe location. You should wear make up like Shaun as you certainly felt feminine to me…
By: Flood - 11th May 2004 at 23:24
But his head was bigger than the hand that was trying to give him bunny ears…;)
Flood.™
By: EN830 - 11th May 2004 at 23:18
His hand isn’t big enough, that’s why he moved.
By: Flood - 11th May 2004 at 21:38
Not me – I wouldn’t bad mouth him. He is too good for that.
Did you not notice him clutching your family jewels in the team shot?
Not what I want next time!
Flood.™
By: EN830 - 11th May 2004 at 20:58
Don’t you call him a psychopath, he’s drives a mini and doesn’t ride a bike.
By: Flood - 11th May 2004 at 20:54
Actually, I thought you came across as rather a level-headed sociopath…
Flood.™
By: EN830 - 11th May 2004 at 20:36
Okay, I’m very stupid, very arrogant, very narrow-minded and very racist. Now perhaps we can get back to realistic and reasoned debate on the topic.
Don’t put yourself down I don’t think you are racist.
By: EN830 - 11th May 2004 at 20:36
not to want other cultures (immigrants) coming into the sacred kingdom you call England.
And let them swim all the way !!!! 😀
By: SHAMROCK321 - 3rd May 2004 at 21:02
Ireland doesnt have a Prime Minister.Hes our Taoiseach.*******
By: Geforce - 2nd May 2004 at 20:51
Geforce,
You obviously dont see what goes on over here, these so called immigrants will get a house, possibly a job, ex ammount per week to live on and probably start yelling about human rights every time we English complain. But if we pleaded for a house and state hand outs we’d be extemely luckyAt the moment there are hundreds possibly thousands of English people expecting their insurances to mature after paying their premiums for the best part of their working lives, but getting a poor return ,Why? because the money is being channeled to finance our poorer “relations”
I, like most other middle aged Englishmen, have paid my taxes and my National Insurance stamp for the past 40 years, so these freeloaders can come over here and rip us off? I’m sick to death of political correctness and bloody left wing do gooders.
What happens when these people cant get jobs? hundreds of men hanging round street corners some turning to crime more than likely because they’re bored. There are a lot very angry people in this country, Ive never been a racist person or even homophobic but the whole situation is making me that way!!!!!
So dont preach to us here in the UK about welcoming these people into the EU!!!!
dave
Well, in that case, the UK indeed has a huge problem. In B. illegal immigrants don’t get such a luxury-treatment. In fact, they are treated more like prisoners. I’m not saying that’s the right solution, but at least we’re not overwelmed with immigrants. The problems we are facing here is Moroccans etc who have a Belgian passport, but behave bad. Many people would like to send them back to “their country of origin”, as an extreme-right wing party says, however this is impossible as they are already Belgians since two or maybe three generations.
By: MINIDOH - 2nd May 2004 at 19:52
Shaun, why call Snapper that. Whats stopping us from saying that you are very dumb, wearing thick glasses coated in red paint and you think you are living on a bed of roses?
Geforce, I am sorry but Brussels does NOT have the same problems as we do here in the UK. The UK government lies about the immigrant numbers. Well, it words it strangely. It says that 6% of the UK population are immigrants. This is true, but that is not counting all of the children that these people have. The children are not classed as immigrants. These immigrant statistics are simply not true. Evidently many of you who side with the immigrants have NEVER walked through Birmingham/Wembley and many other racist areas. Shaun, I agree that we need immigrants, but only some. Why give them money though? Why give them money that I and many other people have worked for and pay through tax? I dont want to so why should I?!
By: Snapper - 2nd May 2004 at 19:29
Okay, I’m very stupid, very arrogant, very narrow-minded and very racist. Now perhaps we can get back to realistic and reasoned debate on the topic.
By: Grey Area - 2nd May 2004 at 18:15
Ive never been a racist person or even homophobic
Errr…..did you mean “xenophobic” there, dcfly?
By: SHAMROCK321 - 2nd May 2004 at 18:13
Okay this was definitley a good day BUT Dublin airport was almost brought to a complete standstill so they could come through here reather than travel through Baldonnel which is just as close to Farmleigh.Normal airlines were shunted off their stands so ministers could use them.Every single flight between 11-2 was delayed yesterday and I meen EVERY flight.Michael O’Leary was none to impressed.Then today my mam dropped me to the airport so I could do some spotting.Nobody around except a paramedic.I was told by the guards that I had to move on which I understood but I had no phone or vehicle to move.I had to walk to a pub and wait.Then I was waitng fro my ma and a airport police car came towards me with its sirens flashing.He was looking for me and said that every police man patrolling the airport was looking for me and they had found a bag which they thought belonged to me.My ma thought I had been kidnapped and murdered or somthing.
I know there is 25 heads of staes in Dublin this weekend but we cant even fart without being questioned by the police.
Has it got to the point were we cant even plane spot on these special occasions.We are letting terroists achieve exactly what they want.
By: Arabella-Cox - 2nd May 2004 at 18:09
Snapper, i dont care for your respect and if you dont answer me i am not really bothered. But you are either very stupid, very narrow minded, very arrogant or very racisit not to want other cultures (immigrants) coming into the sacred kingdom you call England.
By: dcfly - 2nd May 2004 at 17:49
Geforce,
You obviously dont see what goes on over here, these so called immigrants will get a house, possibly a job, ex ammount per week to live on and probably start yelling about human rights every time we English complain. But if we pleaded for a house and state hand outs we’d be extemely luckyAt the moment there are hundreds possibly thousands of English people expecting their insurances to mature after paying their premiums for the best part of their working lives, but getting a poor return ,Why? because the money is being channeled to finance our poorer “relations”
I, like most other middle aged Englishmen, have paid my taxes and my National Insurance stamp for the past 40 years, so these freeloaders can come over here and rip us off? I’m sick to death of political correctness and bloody left wing do gooders.
What happens when these people cant get jobs? hundreds of men hanging round street corners some turning to crime more than likely because they’re bored. There are a lot very angry people in this country, Ive never been a racist person or even homophobic but the whole situation is making me that way!!!!!
So dont preach to us here in the UK about welcoming these people into the EU!!!!
dave
By: Snapper - 2nd May 2004 at 17:46
“Sorry, I thought you meant NIMBY as an offence. In Belgium we use the word to describe a hypocrite.”
Not at all mate, no offence intended. Didn’t realise it was an insult! And yes, I do see your points too. It’s such a complex problem for us.
By: google - 2nd May 2004 at 16:22
And in other news, the Irish celebrate the expansion of the EU by beating the hell out of each other.
http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/news/articles/PA_NEWEUEnlargementSat21EUviole?source=
It isn’t an Irish celebration without somebody getting his ass kicked. 🙂
As Kent Brockman put it succinctly,
All this drinking, violence, destruction of property. Are these the things we think of when we think of the Irish?
– Kent Brockman, “The Simpsons”
By: Geforce - 2nd May 2004 at 14:53
Sorry, I thought you meant NIMBY as an offence. In Belgium we use the word to describe a hypocrite.
But to ge back to the original topic. Yes, we face the same problems in Belgium. However, I’m not saying our gov’t is doing a good job currently on stopping illegal immigrants, but the fact that you need an ID-card in Belgium seems to scare of these immigrants. It has little to do with politics I reckon, but more with organisation. Therefor it could be usefull to have a look across the channel and see how they’re handling problems. It’s not always better, but sometimes it can be. Understand what I mean?
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May 1, 2004 at 12:26 pm