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The European Economic Community was created in 1957 -

The European Economic Community (EEC) was the predecessor of the EU. The member countries were Belgium, France, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and West Germany. The group aimed to remove trade barriers and form a common market.

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France rejected the UK's application - During Charles de Gaulle's leadership of France in the 1960s, the country twice rejected the United Kingdom's application to join the EEC.

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The Schengen Agreement -

By 1985, the EEC had 10 member states. Five of them signed the Schengen Agreement, which eventually opened borders of agreeing member states.

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Treaty on European Union -

Commonly known as the Maastricht Treaty, it was officially signed by member states in 1992, thus laying the foundation of the European Union as we know it today.

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Further cooperation -

In 1993, the member nations at the time extended their cooperation into the areas of justice and home affairs, as well as a common foreign and security policy.

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The motto -

The European Union has a motto that reads "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 cultures, traditions, and languages.

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Mega expansion -

On April 30, 2004, a ceremony was held in Dublin, Ireland, marking the expansion of the EU from 15 to 25 members. The new members included Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Cyprus, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, and Slovenia.

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The European Union has its own flag -

The EU flag has 12 stars, and it's believed that they were originally meant to symbolize the first 12 countries to join the EU. However, now the 12 stars are generally thought of as a symbol of unity and perfection.

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There are 24 official languages -

European Parliament debates, sessions, conferences, and documents are all translated into the official languages. The European Parliament is the biggest employer of interpreters in the world, with 350 permanent interpreters.

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Important EU cities -

Four cities are very important for the European Union. Brussels in Belgium has the EU headquarters and part of the parliament. Strasbourg in France has the main parliament. Frankfurt, Germany, has the European Central Bank. And Luxembourg has the European Court of Justice.

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The Euro is the main currency -

The main currency in the EU is the Euro, but not every country has adopted it. First introduced in 2002, it's today the official currency of 19 countries.

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The passports have the same color -

All European Union countries have a red passport, with "European Union" written at the top, followed by the country the person is the citizen of.

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Member countries aren’t forced to remain in the European Union -

Any country is allowed to leave if they choose, but they must notify the EU of that decision. Arrangements have to be made in order for a country to leave, with decisions made as to how any dealings between that country and the Union in the future would be taken care of.

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EU trade -

The EU accounts for around 15% of the world’s trade in goods. The EU, China, and the US are the three largest global players in international trade.

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Free movement for citizens -

All citizens of the member states have the right to move freely within the European Union, including to live and study. Additionally, the European Health Insurance Card offers health care access in any participating European country.

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Its anthem -

The EU has its own anthem, 'Ode to Joy,' from Ludwig van Beethoven’s 'Ninth Symphony,' composed in 1823. The anthem is played at official ceremonies of the EU or when several countries share an event.

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EU presidency -

The presidency of the Council of the European Union rotates every six months. It represents the governments of the member states, and the presidency is held by the national government in question's head of state.

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The Syrian refugee crisis -

In 2016, the EU and Turkey reached an agreement on how to deal with the influx of Syrian refugees arriving in Europe. The agreement stipulates that all migrants entering Greece from Turkey would be returned to Turkey. For every Syrian returned to Turkey from Greece, another Syrian would be resettled to the European Union.

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Brexit -

After having officially voted to leave the EU in 2016, the UK formally left in 2020 after years of negotiation. They became the first nation to leave the EU.

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The European Union has won the Nobel Peace Prize -

The EU was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2012 based on its contributions towards peace and reconciliation since the Second World War.

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US and EU relations -

The US is the EU's main trading partner. Together, they dominate global trade, and play leading roles in international diplomacy and military strength.

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The big and small nations -

The largest country by land area in the European Union is France, while the biggest EU country by population is Germany, with 83.28 million people. The smallest country by land area and population is Malta.

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They run a network of schools for their staff -

The EU also runs a network of schools for its staff. The curriculum is multilingual, and students must always follow a combination of language, humanities, and scientific subjects with subjects taught through more than one language.

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The Erasmus program -

Student exchanges in the EU are organized through the Erasmus program. It helped more than four million people study and train abroad between 2014 and 2020.

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The EU isn't the only European sovereignty -

Apart from the EU, there's also the Council of Europe in Strasbourg with 47 member states, including the UK. It’s Europe’s leading human rights organization and is known for its European Convention on Human Rights. It also makes judgments through the European Court of Human Rights.

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European Parliament -

The European Parliament is the largest and only directly-elected international body in the world. It has more than 700 members, representing citizens from 27 member states.

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Sanctions lifted on Cuba in 2008 -

Even if the European Union is critical of Cuba's human right abuses, they did lift diplomatic and economic sanctions in 2008.

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Ukraine's EU application -

Only four days into the country's invasion by Russia, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy signed an application for Ukraine's membership to the EU.

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Ukraine's application is still in process -

On March 10, 2022, the European Council issued a statement in support of Ukraine's application, saying, "Ukraine belongs to our European family." However, the Council doesn't agree on fast-tracking their membership process.

Sources: (CNN) (PBS) (European Union 1 and 2)

See also: Office jobs: The career of world leaders before politics

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