EU History 1960-2007

Question 1

EFTA

Answer 1

European Free Trade Association
3 May 1960

The European Free Trade Association is set up by a number of European countries that are not part of the European Economic Community (Austria, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom) to reduce barriers and increase trade of goods and services with each other. Today, its members are Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland.

Question 2

Building of the Berlin Wall

Answer 2

Building of the Berlin Wall
13 August 1961

The communist authorities in East Germany begin to build a high wall through the centre of Berlin to prevent their citizens from escaping to a freer life in the West. It becomes an iconic symbol of the Cold War.

Question 3

CAP
PAC
GAP

Answer 3

Common Agricultural Policy
Politique agricole commune
Gemeinsame Agrarpolitik
30 July 1962

Launched in 1962, the common agricultural policy (CAP) is one of the EU’s oldest policies, supporting farmers and ensuring that Europe’s food is safe to eat.

Die Gemeinsame Agrarpolitik (GAP) ist ein Politikbereich der Europäischen Union. Sie definiert Regeln für die Landwirtschaft in den Staaten der Europäischen Union. Mit rund 40 Prozent des Gesamtbudgets der EU stellt die GAP den zweitgrößten Haushaltsposten der Gemeinschaft dar.[1] Die GAP gehört auch zu den ältesten Politikfeldern der EU: die sechs Gründungsmitglieder der Europäischen Gemeinschaften einigten sich schon bei der Unterzeichnung der Römischen Verträge 1957 auf die Vergemeinschaftung der Landwirtschaftspolitik. Sie trat 1962 in Kraft.

Die GAP unterstützte Landwirte ursprünglich über Preisgarantien. Staatliche Stellen kauften Produkte, die für den garantierten Preis (Interventionspreis) nicht abgesetzt werden konnten, auf. In den 1990er Jahren wurde die GAP liberalisiert. Preisgarantien wurden gesenkt und schrittweise durch produktionsunabhängige Direktbeihilfen an landwirtschaftliche Höfe ersetzt.[2] Die GAP beruht heute auf zwei „Säulen“. Die erste Säule umfasst Direktzahlungen an Landwirte sowie die gemeinsamen Marktordnungen für einzelne Agrarerzeugnisse. Die zweite Säule ergänzt die GAP seit 1999 und zielt auf die Entwicklung des ländlichen Raums.[3] Seit der Reform 2013 gewann die Reduktion der negativen Umweltauswirkungen der Landwirtschaft an Bedeutung.

Die Förder-Leitlinien der GAP werden in der Regel alle sieben Jahre beschlossen und richten sich nach den mehrjährigen Haushaltsplänen der EU. Für die Periode von 2021 bis 2027 sind rund 365 Milliarden Euro eingeplant.

Question 4

Yaoundé Convention

Answer 4

Yaoundé Convention
20 July 1963

The EU signs its first big international agreement (The Yaoundé Convention), a deal to help 18 former colonies in Africa. By 2005, it has a special partnership with 78 countries in the African, Caribbean and Pacific regions. The EU is the world’s biggest provider of development assistance
to poorer countries. Its aid is linked to respect for human rights.

Question 5

Berlaymont building

Answer 5

New European Commission headquarters
1 January 1967

The Berlaymont office building, the European Commission’s headquarters, was originally built in 1967, on the former site of a convent and boarding school run by the Sisters of Berlaymont (Dames de Berlaymont). It was later refurbished and the newly renovated building was unveiled on 21 October 2004. The European Commission President offices occupy the 13th floor.

Question 6

Merger Treaty

Answer 6

Merger Treaty
1 July 1967

The Merger Treaty comes into effect, creating a single Council of Ministers and a single Commission for the European Communities (the European Coal and Steel Community, the European Economic Community, and the European Atomic Energy Community). They already share a Parliamentary Assembly and a Court of Justice.

Question 7

Free cross-border trade

Answer 7

Free cross-border trade
1 July 1968

Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands stop charging taxes on imports of each other’s goods, allowing free cross-border trade for the first time. They also apply the same taxes on the goods they import from other countries. The world’s biggest trading group is born! Trade among the six, and between them and the rest of the world, grows rapidly.

Question 8

Single market for goods

Answer 8

Single market for goods
1 December 1969

At a meeting in The Hague, in the Netherlands, EU leaders from Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands confirm their willingness to move towards a single market with a common currency and reaffirm their agreement on the principle of letting other countries join the EU. Thanks to the single market, it is not only people who can now move around freely in the EU, but also goods, services and money.

Question 9

First EU enlargement

Answer 9

First EU enlargement
1 January 1973

Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom join the European Communities, marking the first enlargement. Together with Belgium, Germany, France, Italy, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, they bring the membership to nine. Following a referendum, Norway decides not to join.

Question 10

EU Environment Action Programme

Answer 10

EU Environment Action Programme
22 November 1973

European Community leaders adopt the first Environment Action Programme based on the idea that prevention is better than cure and that there should be a price on pollution. The fight against pollution intensifies in the 1970s with the rise of the environmental movement and the first political parties based on green principles, which include environmentalism, social justice and non-violence. Since then, climate change and the environment
have been very high on the EU’s political agenda.

Question 11

Creation of European Council

Answer 11

Creation of European Council
9 December 1974

The European Council
is created with the intention of establishing an informal forum for discussion between heads of state or government.

Question 12

First European Elections

Answer 12

First European Elections
7 June 1979

For the first time, European citizens can vote for who they want to represent them in the European Parliament. Before the introduction of direct elections, MEPs were appointed by the national parliaments of each Member State. The European elections have been held every 5 years since then. You have the right to vote at 18 in all EU countries except Austria, Malta, Belgium, Germany (16), and Greece (17).

Question 13

Simone Veil

Answer 13

Simone Veil
17 July 1979

Simone Veil, former French health minister and survivor of the Holocaust, becomes the first President of the directly-elected European Parliament, and the first woman to hold the post.
1975 brachte sie in FR das Gesetz zur Entkriminalisierung des Schwangerschaftsabbruchs zur Abstimmung, das deshalb als Loi Veil bekannt ist.

Question 14

Greece joins the European Communities

Answer 14

Greece joins the European Communities
1 January 1981

Greece becomes the 10th country to join the European Communities, now known as the European Union.

Question 15

Greenland leaves the European Communities

Answer 15

Greenland leaves the European Communities
1 February 1985

Between 1973 and 1985, Greenland was part of the European Communities (today called the European Union). Following a referendum held in 1982, it withdrew from the EU but remains associated with it as an Overseas Country and Territory.

Question 16

ESPRIT

Answer 16

ESPRIT: first research and development programme
28 February 1984

With computers and technology changing the way we live and work, the EU adopts the ‘ESPRIT’ programme (European Strategic Programme for Research and Development in Information Technology). It is the first of many research and development programmes
that aim to help the EU stay at the forefront of innovation. Horizon 2020 is the largest ever European funding programme for research and innovation, with EUR 77 billion of EU funding available from 2014 to 2020. The next research and innovation programme is expected to be even bigger!

Question 17

Schengen Agreement

Answer 17

Schengen Agreement
14 June 1985

A small village in Luxembourg gives its name to the Schengen Agreement that gradually allows people to travel without having their passports checked at the borders. It is signed on 14 June 1985 by Belgium, Germany, France, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. 26 countries currently make up the Schengen area.

Implementation Agreement:
On 19 June 1990, the Convention implementing the Schengen Agreement (Schengen Convention) was signed. The Convention provides for compensatory measures to ensure a single area of security and justice following the abolition of internal border controls.
- standardizing the provisions concerning the entry and short-term stay of foreigners in the “Schengen area” (uniform Schengen visa);
- asylum (determination of the Member State responsible for processing the asylum application);
- measures to combat cross-border drug trafficking;
- police cooperation (prosecution) and
- mutual legal assistance.

Question 18

Schengen members

Answer 18

NL, Belgien, LUX, Deutschland, Frankreich, Portugal und Spanien (seit 26. März 1995)
Italien (seit 26. Oktober 1997)
Österreich (seit 1. Dezember 1997 bei den Luftgrenzen, seit 1. April 1998 bei den Landgrenzen)
Griechenland (seit 8. Dezember 1997)
Dänemark, Finnland, Island, Norwegen, Schweden (seit 25. März 2001)
Estland, Lettland, Litauen, Malta, Polen, Slowakei, Slowenien, Tschechien und Ungarn (seit 21. Dezember 2007)
Schweiz (seit 12. Dezember 2008 bei den Landgrenzen und 29. März 2009 bei den Luftgrenzen)
Liechtenstein (seit 19. Dezember 2011)
Kroatien (seit 1. Januar 2023 bei den Land- und Seebinnengrenzen und 26. März 2023 bei den Luftgrenzen)
Bulgarien und Rumänien (seit 31. März 2024, zunächst nur bei den Luft- und Seebinnengrenzen; die Landgrenzen werden vorerst weiter kontrolliert)

Question 19

Spain and Portugal join the European Communities

Answer 19

Spain and Portugal join the European Communities
1 January 1986

Spain and Portugal join the European Communities, bringing the total number of members to twelve.

Question 20

European flag

Answer 20

European flag
29 May 1986

The European flag is raised for the first time in front of the Berlaymont building — the headquarters of the European Commission in Brussels — to the music of the European anthem
. The flag is made up of 12 golden stars on a blue background. The number of stars never changes. They stand for the ideals of unity, solidarity and harmony among the peoples of Europe. The flag flies above many parliaments, municipal buildings, parks and monuments all over Europe.

Question 21

Start of Erasmus programme

Answer 21

Start of Erasmus programme
15 June 1987

The Erasmus programme
is set up to help young Europeans study abroad in other European countries. It has helped more than 9 million people to study, train and volunteer abroad and plans to help many more millions in the years to come.

Question 22

Single European Act
Einheitliche Europäische Akte (EEA)

Answer 22

Single European Act
1 July 1987

Although import taxes between member countries disappeared in 1968, trade is not flowing freely across EU borders because of differences in national regulations. The Single European Act launches a 6-year programme to resolve these differences. The act also gives the European Parliament more say and makes the name ‘European Parliament’ official.

Question 23

Montreal Agreement

Answer 23

Montreal Agreement
16 September 1987

In Montreal, Canada, the international community agree to take action to fix a hole in the ozone layer
, the shield high up in the Earth’s atmosphere that protects us against the harmful effects of the sun. They do this by agreeing to phase out the production of harmful substances that cause the damage. Action by countries around the world is slowly helping to shrink the hole. The agreement was signed by 197 countries, including all EU Member States, and is considered by many to be the most successful environmental global action ever.

Question 24

World Wide Web

Answer 24

World Wide Web
1 January 1989

British engineer and computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee invents the ‘World Wide Web’ (‘www’). The world’s first website is launched on 6 August 1991.

Question 25

Civil war in the Balkans

Answer 25

Civil war in the Balkans
1 January 1991

In the Balkans, Yugoslavia begins to break apart. Fighting erupts first in Slovenia and Croatia, then in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where a bloody civil war would lead to the dissolution of Yugoslavia.

Question 26

EU Ecolabel

Answer 26

EU Ecolabel
23 March 1992

The EU Ecolabel is created to promote consumer products that are kind to the environment.

Question 27

Natura 2000

Answer 27

Natura 2000
21 May 1992

The EU establishes the ‘Natura 2000’ network, which offers a haven to Europe’s most threatened wildlife species and habitats. Stretching over 18 % of the EU’s land area and almost 6 % of its marine territory, it is the largest coordinated network of protected areas in the world. Since 2017, May 21 is celebrated as European Natura 2000 Day.

Question 28

European Humanitarian Aid Office

Answer 28

European Humanitarian Aid Office
1 April 1992

The European Commission sets up a ‘European Humanitarian Aid Office’. The EU is one of the world’s largest aid providers. It provides relief assistance for food, shelter, education, protection and healthcare in many countries around the world.

Question 29

Single Market

Answer 29

Single Market
1 January 1993

Thanks to the single market, launched on 1 January 1993, people, goods, services and money can move around the EU almost as though it were a single country. EU citizens can study, live, shop, work and retire in any country, and enjoy products from all over Europe. It is one of the EU’s greatest achievements.

Question 30

European Parliament building in Brussels

Answer 30

European Parliament building in Brussels
12 October 1993

The oldest European Parliament building in Brussels, which was named after its first President and one of the EU’s founders, Belgian politician Paul-Henri Spaak, opened in 1993. The largest building in the European Parliament complex, dedicated to another EU founder — Italian politician Altiero Spinelli — opened in 1998. In 2008, two new buildings were completed. The Parliament, its committees and plenary meetings are all open to the public.

Question 31

Maastricht Treaty

Answer 31

Maastricht Treaty
1 November 1993

The Maastricht Treaty, named after the Dutch city in which it was signed, comes into force. It is a major milestone of the European integration. It formally creates the European Union and paves the way for the creation of the single European currency: the euro. It also gives the European Parliament a bigger role in decision-making and the power to approve the Commission as a whole.

Am 7. Februar 1992 wurde der Vertrag von Maastricht zur Gründung der Europäischen Union (EU) unterzeichnet. Er trat am 1. November 1993 in Kraft. In dem Vertrag wurde zum einen die Gründung einer Wirtschafts- und Währungsunion beschlossen, die später zur Einführung des Euro führte; zum anderen beschlossen die Mitgliedstaaten eine engere Koordinierung in der Außen- und Sicherheitspolitik und im Bereich Inneres und Justiz. Zugleich wurde die EWG 5Europäische Wirtschaftsgemeinschaft) in Europäische Gemeinschaft (EG) umbenannt, da sie nun auch Zuständigkeiten in anderen Politikbereichen als der Wirtschaft erhielt (etwa in der Umweltpolitik).

Question 32

European Economic Area

Answer 32

European Economic Area
1 January 1994

A ‘European Economic Area’ stretching from the Arctic to the Mediterranean is created, extending the single market beyond just the EU countries. Today the European Economic Area is made up of all EU Member States, plus Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway who participate in the single market and are governed by the same basic rules. These rules enable free movement of goods, people, services and capital within the single market.

Question 33

European Medicines Agency
Europäische Arzneimittel-Agentur

Answer 33

European Medicines Agency
1 January 1995

The European Medicines Agency is set up. It ensures that medicines used for people and animals in the EU are safe and effective.
Sitz bis 2019 in London, nun Amsterdam

Question 34

Austria, Finland and Sweden join the EU

Answer 34

Austria, Finland and Sweden join the EU
1 January 1995

Austria, Finland and Sweden join the EU, increasing its membership to 15.

Question 35

First European Ombudsman

Answer 35

First European Ombudsman
12 July 1995

The European Parliament appoints Jacob Söderman from Finland as the first Ombudsman
of the European Union to deal with complaints about maladministration in the EU institutions, bodies, offices and agencies. Anyone who is a citizen of a European Member State or lives in a Member State can make a complaint to the European Ombudsman

Question 36

Treaty of Amsterdam

Answer 36

Treaty of Amsterdam
2 October 1997

The Treaty of Amsterdam is signed in the capital of the Netherlands. It prepares the European Union for the arrival of future Member States. From now on, a new Commission president can only be appointed with the approval of the European Parliament.

Question 37

European Central Bank

Answer 37

European Central Bank
1 June 1998

The European Central Bank, which works with the national central banks of all EU Member States and is responsible for managing the euro, is created. Its main aim is to keep prices stable in order to support economic growth and job creation. It is based in Frankfurt, Germany.

Question 38

United in diversity

Answer 38

United in diversity
4 May 2000

After a competition to find a motto for Europe, which attracted 80 000 entries from young Europeans, a Grand Jury, chaired by former European Commission President Jacques Delors, selects the winner: ‘United in diversity’. It signifies how Europeans have come together, in the form of the EU, to work for peace and prosperity, while at the same time being enriched by the continent’s many different cultures, traditions and languages.

Question 39

EU’s Charter of Fundamental Rights

Answer 39

EU’s Charter of Fundamental Rights
7 December 2000

The rights of every individual in the EU were established at different times, in different ways and in different forms. For this reason, the EU decided to include them all in a single document: the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union. Signed by EU leaders on 7 December 2000 it guarantees rights to EU citizens and residents. These include respect for privacy and family life, protection of personal data, the right to marry and have a family, and the right to receive an education.

Question 40

Treaty of Nice

Answer 40

Treaty of Nice
26 February 2001

The Treaty of Nice is signed by the heads of the EU’s 15 Member States at a meeting in this French city. It changes the EU’s decision-making process so that the European Union will be ready for countries from Eastern Europe to join when ready. The European Parliament’s legislative and supervisory powers are increased. The treaty comes into force on 1 February 2003.

Question 41

The euro

Answer 41

The euro
1 January 2002

The Delors Report proposed a three-stage preparatory period for economic and monetary union and the euro area, spanning the period 1990 to 1999. European leaders accepted the recommendations in the Delors Report.

The new Treaty on European Union, which contained the provisions needed to implement the monetary union, was agreed at the European Council held at Maastricht, the Netherlands, in December 1991.

After a decade of preparations, the euro was launched on 1 January 1999: for the first three years it was an ‘invisible’ currency, only used for accounting purposes and electronic payments. Coins and banknotes were launched on 1 January 2002, and in 12 EU countries the biggest cash changeover in history took place.

Question 42

Rapid Alert System for safer products

Answer 42

Rapid Alert System for safer products
1 January 2004

The Rapid Alert System to protect European consumers from dangerous products becomes operational. Stringent safety standards apply to toys, electrical appliances, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals, and strict rules ensure that unsafe products are recalled from the market.

Question 43

Guarantee for consumer goods

Answer 43

Guarantee for consumer goods
1 January 2002

A two-year minimum guarantee period for consumer goods
is introduced. EU law also protects you when you buy goods anywhere other than in a shop. You now have the right to cancel your order or return your purchase within 14 days.

Question 44

Ten more countries join the EU

Answer 44

Ten more countries join the EU
1 May 2004

Large parts of eastern and western Europe are united in peace and democracy as 10 new countries join the EU. The addition of Cyprus, Czechia, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia brings the total number of Member States to 25. Numerous events take place across Europe to mark this historic enlargement.

Question 45

European Health Insurance Card

Answer 45

European Health Insurance Card
1 June 2004

Introduction of the European Health Insurance Card. As an EU citizen, if you fall ill or have an accident in another EU country, as well as in Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland, you are entitled to receive any urgent medical treatment that cannot wait until you get home.

Question 46

Bulgaria and Romania join the EU

Answer 46

Bulgaria and Romania join the EU
1 January 2007

Bulgaria and Romania join the European Union, bringing its membership to 27. Irish becomes the 21st official language and Bulgarian and Romanian bring the number to 23.

Question 47

EU constitution

Answer 47

29 May-1 June 2005 – EU constitution

Voters in France and the Netherlands reject the Treaty establishing a constitution for Europe, which was signed by the 25 EU member states in October 2004.