Today, the Czech Republic is commemorating twenty years of membership in one of the largest communities in the world, the European Union. We are part of an economic and political international institution that brings together twenty-seven hundred of the countries of Europe, but they share common values, namely democracy.
After 77.33 percent of us decided to join the European Union in the so-called European referendum in June 2003, we became its members on May 1, 2004, along with nine hundred others. lo o so far the first born in the EU, which was his fifth.
But it wasn’t just like that. The entry process started several years ago. The path to the accession of the republics to the EU was officially started on December 13, 1997 by the European Council in Luxembourg, which at its meeting decided on the official invitation of 11 candidate states to join the EU, including the Czech Republic. Our country was represented at the Summit by President Vclav Havel and Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaroslav Ediv. And after meeting all the so-called Kodask criteria, we were able to become premium tenants.
The following years were marked by great changes and the transition of the Czech Republic between active and full-fledged members of the Union. It was very important for the Czech Republic to be included in the Schengen area on December 21, 2007, which allowed it to move freely between the country and other Czech states. We could then once again travel as we know it today. Two years later, in the first half of 2009, the first ever presidency of R in the Council of the European Union took place with the motto Europe without barriers. That year, we ratified the Treaty of Lisbon and adopted the Copenhagen Agreement, which set a target for greenhouse gas emissions, which strengthened the EU’s fight against climate change.
With the arrest, one of the EU agencies, GSA, which manages the entire EU space program, was opened. The agency has been based in Prague since 2012, and from 2021 under the name EUSPA (European Union Agency for the Space Program).
Many important agreements, ratifications and agreements followed, which make Europe as we see it around us. Europe is all around us, on which we are always working. That is why the motto of the second presidency of the Council of the European Union, which took place in the second half of 2022, was “Europe as a wheel”.
Community with no more than 400 million inhabitants of the EU means safety, study and work opportunities, free movement of goods, services and capital, quality healthcare, support and financing of our project, equality and protection of human rights, easier communication and, last but not least, support for environmental protection and the fight against climate change. Not only that, the EU positively influences everyday life.
But none of this is self-evident. We are thus part of a world that is not tired of many people who can very easily get into crises and general disagreements. And when it comes to situations that we are currently witnessing (climate change, military conflicts, health risks, digital threats, etc.) or situations that we have learned from in the past, we are not alone in this.
Together, we represent the largest population, we are the largest single market, we are represented by over 140 delegations around the world, we are the world’s bearer of humanitarian aid, we care about our health, we have trade agreements with more than 80 partners around the world, we invest in science and research, we support we are holding talks for an end to the conflict, we are leading a worldwide fight against climate change, we are fighting for democracy and even the first century, and we are protecting ourselves, our families and friends, with whom we are building a better Europe in twenty years!
Today, you can celebrate twenty years since the entry of the Czech Republic into the EU with them on the Prague islands and in the center of Prague at the Zaijte Europa event!
Author: Adla Kov
Photo: Unsplash
