Spain · 25th anniversary of the 2004 EU enlargement

With the accession of ten states to the European Union on 1 May 2004, substantial parts of the political division of Europe that had emerged after the Second World War were overcome. Beforehand, the acceding countries had adapted their legislation and state structures to the requirements of the European Union. The basis included stable democratic institutions, respect for human rights, a functioning market economy and the ability to apply the Union’s common rules.

The new member states included Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czechia, Slovakia, Hungary and Slovenia, as well as Cyprus and Malta. The enlargement thus encompassed both Central and Eastern European states and two Mediterranean islands. For the European Union, this changed its geographical orientation as well as its political and economic composition.

The accession was agreed by treaty in Athens on 16 April 2003. With the entry into force of the Treaty of Accession, the new member states obtained seats and participation rights in the institutions of the European Union. The enlargement also affected the composition of the European Parliament, the Council and the European Commission.

For Spain, the event was also connected with its own development within European integration. Spain had joined the European Community together with Portugal in 1986 and was therefore one of the states familiar with the integration process from its own experience. The memory of the enlargement therefore also refers to the gradual integration of various European states into a common legal and political framework.