The European Union was established in 1957 by Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany. It has since expanded to 27 member states using the Euro currency. The EU has 23 official languages and was founded on principles of unity and diversity.

1. The European Union
By: Viktor Gombocz

2. Background
 Established: March 25, 1957 as the European
Community
 Founding members: Belgium, France, Italy,
Luxembourg, the Netherlands and West Germany
 Motto: Unified in Diversity
 Anthem: Ode to Joy
 Official languages: 23 (on next slide)
 Member states: 27 (on slide 4)
 Currency: Euro
 Internet TLD: .eu

3. Languages
 Bulgarian  Latvian
 Czech  Lithuanian
 Danish  Maltese
 Dutch  Polish
 English  Portuguese
 Estonian  Romanian
 Finnish  Slovak
 French  Slovene
 German  Spanish
 Greek  Swedish
 Hungarian
 Irish
 Italian

4. Member states
 Austria  Latvia
 Belgium  Lithuania
 Bulgaria  Luxembourg
 Cyprus  Malta
 Czech Republic  Netherlands
 Denmark  Poland
 Estonia  Portugal
 Finland  Romania
 France  Slovakia
 Germany  Slovenia
 Greece  Spain
 Hungary  Sweden
 Ireland  United Kingdom
 Italy

5. Enlargement since
establishment
 Joined in 1957 (founding members ): Belgium,
France, Germany (as West Germany), Italy,
Luxembourg and the Netherlands.
 Joined in 1973: Denmark, Ireland and the United
Kingdom.
 Joined in 1981: Greece.
 Joined in 1986: Portugal and Spain.
 Joined in 1995: Austria, Finland and Sweden.
 Joined in 2004: Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia,
Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia
and Slovenia.
 Joined in 2007: Bulgaria and Romania.

6. MAP

7. Flags – Founding members
 Belgium, France, (West) Germany, Italy,
Luxembourg, Netherlands.

8. Flags – Members who joined in
1973
 Denmark, Ireland, United Kingdom.

9. Flags – Members who joined in
1981
 Greece.

10. Flags – Members who joined in
1986
 Portugal, Spain.

11. Flags – Members who joined in
1995
 Austria, Finland, Sweden.

12. Flags – Members who joined in
2004
 Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia,
Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, Slovenia.

13. Flags – Members who joined in
2007
 Bulgaria and Romania.

14. EU – Flags of all 27 member
states

15. EU – Geography
 Borders 13 non-EU
members: Albania,
Andorra, Belarus, Croatia,
Liechtenstein, Macedonia,
Moldova, Norway, Russia,
Serbia, Switzerland, Turkey
and Ukraine.
 Borders the Black Sea, the
Mediterranean Sea, the
Adrian Sea, the Ionian Sea,
the Tyrrhenian Sea, the
Baltic Sea, the North Sea,
the Gulf of Finland and the
English Channel, the
Atlantic Ocean, the Irish
Sea, the Celtic Sea.

16. Flags seen with EU
languages
 Bulgarian: Bulgaria
 Czech: Czech Republic
 Danish: Denmark
 Dutch: Belgium, Netherlands
 English: United Kingdom
 Estonian: Estonia
 Finnish: Finland
 France: Belgium, France, Switzerland
 German: Austria, Germany, Switzerland
 Greek: Cyprus, Greece
 Hungarian: Hungary

17. Flags seen with EU languages
(cont).
 Irish: Ireland
 Italian: Italy, Switzerland
 Latvian: Latvia
 Lithuanian: Lithuania
 Maltese: Malta
 Polish: Poland
 Portuguese: Portugal
 Romanian: Moldova, Romania
 Slovak: Slovakia
 Slovene: Slovenia
 Spanish: Spain
 Swedish: Sweden

18. Future enlargement
 Five states are recognized as official
EU candidates: Croatia, Iceland,
Macedonia, Montenegro and Turkey.
 Three states are recognized as official
potential candidates: Albania, Bosnia
and Serbia.

19. EU – Biggest economies
 Germany
 France
 United Kingdom
 Italy

20. EU – Trade and Economics
 The EU’s biggest
trading partners are
China, Russia and the
U.S.
 The four biggest
economies are
Germany, France, the
United Kingdom and
Italy.
 France and Germany
are the most important
members of the EU.

21. Euro zone and Schengen
Agreement
 Euro zone: Member states that have
adopted the Euro currency introduced
in 1999 and put into use in 2002.
 Schengen Agreement: Member states
that have ceased passport use at
border controls.