Events in EU History

Year

Event

1951	The European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) is established and includes France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, The Netherlands, and Luxembourg.
1957	The European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) are established by the members of the ECSC.
1960	In response to the ECSC, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Austria, Portugal, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom establish the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).
1965	Treaty is signed merging the ECSC, EEC, and Euratom into the European Community (EC).
1968	The European Community customs union is completed, removing all customs duties between members of the EC and establishing a common external tariff.
1972	Norwegian electorate rejects membership in the European Community in a referendum.
1973	The United Kingdom, Denmark, and Ireland join the European Community.
1979	The European Monetary System (EMS) is established to increase monetary stability within the EC and to promote eventual monetary union within the community. (March)
1979	First direct elections are held for the European Parliament, the legislative body of the European Community. (June)
1981	Greece joins the European Community.
1986	Spain and Portugal join the European Community.
1987	The Single European Act (SEA) enters force; it comprises amendments to existing European Community treaties to increase cooperation and integration within the EC.
1989	EC member states agree to establish Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), which includes the adoption of a single European currency for EC members.
1990	Following the reunification of Germany, the territory of the former East Germany becomes part of the European Community.
1991	The European Council meets at Maastricht, The Netherlands, and agrees to the Treaty on European Union which establishes the European Union (EU).
1992	The European Union and the remaining countries of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA)-Iceland, Norway, and Liechtenstein-agree to form the European Economic Area (EEA), an association establishing a single market and removing trade barriers among member countries.
1993	After ratification by member states, the Treaty on European Union goes into effect.
1995	Austria, Finland, and Sweden join the European Union.
1997	The member governments of the European Union issue the Amsterdam Treaty, which revises the Treaty on European Union to provide for such things as cooperation in job creation throughout the EU and relaxing border controls between member states.
1998	As part of the plan for Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), 11 of the 15 EU member states agree to adopt the euro as a common currency.
1998	The European Central Bank (ECB) is created to oversee the inauguration of the euro and to take control of EU monetary policy. (July)
1999	The euro is adopted for electronic transactions and for accounting purposes; Greece officially adopts the euro for such purposes in 2001, becoming the 12th country to do so.
2002	The euro becomes the official currency of the 12 participating countries; euro coins and bills are issued and the currencies of the 12 states cease to be legal tender.
2004	Ten additional countries formally join the EU, bringing the total number of member countries to 25. The 10 new members were Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia. (May)
2007	Two additional countries—Bulgaria and Romania—formally join the EU, bringing its total membership to 27 countries.