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EU member states and candidates in 2004

There have been 25 European Union member states since 10 states joined on 1 May 2004. Two more states, Bulgaria and Romania, have completed accession negotiations and are set to join the European Union on 1 January 2007. Wikipedia does not have an article with this exact name. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (631x652, 32 KB) EU member states 2004 and candidate members Scaled down map of the European Union from the CIA factbook. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (631x652, 32 KB) EU member states 2004 and candidate members Scaled down map of the European Union from the CIA factbook. ... The European Union (EU) was originally created by the six founding states in 1952, but has grown to its current size of 25 member states. ... May 1 is the 121st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (122nd in leap years). ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... This is an alphabetical list of the sovereign states of the world, including both de jure and de facto independent states. ... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 2007 (MMVII) will be a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Possible future members include:

• Croatia and Turkey, which are recognised as candidate members and currently in membership negotiations
• Republic of Macedonia, which is recognised as official candidate by the European Council on 17 December 2005.
• the three members of European Free Trade Association who are also members of the European Economic Area, although the people of Norway have twice rejected the chance to join in national referenda, and Liechtenstein and Iceland had never applied to join
• Switzerland, the fourth member of EFTA, chose not to join the EEA in national referenda, but has a long-standing EU membership application; however, negotiations are not active.
• states in the Balkans, that are part of the Stabilisation and Association process whose final aim is full EU membership.
• European microstates had never applied to join, but have multiple agreements with the EU like Customs Union and/or Currency Union.
• the remaining states in Europe as stated in the 1992 Treaty of Maastricht (Article 49) geographic criteria.

Official languages Macedonian Capital Skopje President Branko Crvenkovski Prime Minister Vlado Bučkovski Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % water Ranked 146th  25,333 km²  1. ... The European Council, informally called the European summit, is a meeting of the heads of state or government of the European Union, and the President of the European Commission. ... member states The European Free Trade Association (EFTA) was established on May 3, 1960 as an alternative for European states that were not allowed or did not wish to join the European Community (now the European Union). ... Map of the EEA countries. ... A referendum (plural: referendums or referenda) or plebiscite is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. ... A referendum (plural: referendums or referenda) or plebiscite is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. ... The Balkans is the historic and geographic name used to describe a region of south-eastern Europe. ... A European Union Association Agreement (Association Agreement) is a treaty between the European Union (EU) and a non-EU country that creates a framework for co-operation between them. ... The European microstates are microstates (independent states of a very small area) in Europe. ... The European Union has a number of relationships with nations that are not formally part of the Union. ... The Euro area (also called Euro zone or Eurosystem) is the subset of European Union member states which have adopted the euro, creating a currency union. ... World map showing Europe Europe is conventionally considered one of the seven continents which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiogeographic one. ... The Maastricht Treaty (formally, the Treaty on European Union) was signed on 7 February 1992 in Maastricht between the members of the European Community and entered into force on 1 November 1993, under the Delors Commission. ... The Copenhagen criteria are the rules that define whether a nation is eligible to join the European Union. ...

Current members

Together with their dates of accession, the 25 current members of the European Union are:

Image File history File links Flag_of_Austria. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Belgium_(civil). ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a [[leap year starting on Tueday] (link will take you to calendar). ... 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Cyprus. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Czech_Republic. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Denmark. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Estonia. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Finland. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_France. ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a [[leap year starting on Tueday] (link will take you to calendar). ... 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany. ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a [[leap year starting on Tueday] (link will take you to calendar). ... 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Greece. ... 1981 (MCMLXXXI) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Hungary. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Ireland. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Italy. ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a [[leap year starting on Tueday] (link will take you to calendar). ... 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Latvia. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Lithuania. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Luxembourg. ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a [[leap year starting on Tueday] (link will take you to calendar). ... 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Malta. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Netherlands. ... 1952 (MCMLII) was a [[leap year starting on Tueday] (link will take you to calendar). ... 1958 (MCMLVIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Poland. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Portugal. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Slovakia. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Slovenia. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Spain. ... 1986 (MCMLXXXVI) is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Sweden. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom. ... 1973 (MCMLXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday. ...

Future and prospective members

Main articles: Enlargement of the European Union, and [[]], and [[]], and [[]], and [[]]

The European Union (EU) was originally created by the six founding states in 1952, but has grown to its current size of 25 member states. ...

Acceding states

Acceding countries (with year of submitting and accession):

•  Bulgaria – Submitted application for membership in 1995; negotiations completed; set for membership on 1 January 2007.
•  Romania – Submitted application for membership in 1995; negotiations completed; set for membership on 1 January 2007.

Image File history File links Flag_of_Bulgaria. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 2007 (MMVII) will be a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Romania. ... 1995 (MCMXCV) was a common year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 2007 (MMVII) will be a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Other candidate states

•  Croatia – Signed a Stabilisation and Association Agreement with the EU in October 2001; submitted application for membership in February 2003; granted candidate country status on 18 June 2004; negotiations started on 3 October 2005 after being postponed from the proposed date of 17 March 2005.
•  Turkey – Signed an Association Agreement in 1963; submitted application for membership on 14 April 1987; granted candidate country status in 1999; negotiations started on 3 October 2005. (See also Accession of Turkey to the European Union)
•  Republic of Macedonia – Submitted application for membership on 22 March 2004; recommended as a candidate country by the European Commission in November 2005 and the European Council approved the recommendation in December 2005.

Image File history File links Flag_of_Croatia. ... A European Union Association Agreement (Association Agreement) is a treaty between the European Union (EU) and a non-EU country that creates a framework for co-operation between them. ... June 18 is the 169th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (170th in leap years), with 196 days remaining. ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... October 3 is the 276th day of the year (277th in Leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... March 17 is the 76th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (77th in Leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Turkey. ... A European Union Association Agreement (Association Agreement) is a treaty between the European Union (EU) and a non-EU country that creates a framework for co-operation between them. ... April 14 is the 104th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (105th in leap years). ... 1987 (MCMLXXXVII) is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... October 3 is the 276th day of the year (277th in Leap years). ... 2005 (MMV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Turkeys formal application to join the European Community—the organisation that has since developed into the European Union—was made on April 14, 1987. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Macedonia. ... Official languages Macedonian Capital Skopje President Branko Crvenkovski Prime Minister Vlado Bučkovski Area  â€“ Total  â€“ % water Ranked 146th  25,333 km²  1. ... March 22 is the 81st day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (82nd in Leap years). ... 2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The European Commission (formally the Commission of the European Communities) is the executive of the European Union. ... The European Council, informally called the European summit, is a meeting of the heads of state or government of the European Union, and the President of the European Commission. ...

Other nations

Official steps with the aim of EU membership have been made by the following states:

•  Norway – Applications for membership have been submitted (in April 1962 and December 1992), but membership has twice been rejected in national referenda (in September 1972 and in November 1994). In November 2004, a study by the Opinion Institute found 56% of those who expressed an opinion were in favour of joining the EU, ten years after rejecting the idea by referendum. A representative of the institute stated that this has been the balance of power for two to three years. This was confirmed by another poll in April 2005. After two rejections of the EU constitution in France and Netherlands, 59% of Norwegians were opposed to membership in the EU according to a survey taken immediately after the referenda. Prime Minister Kjell Magne Bondevik, a leading figure in the 1994 'no' campaign who now sees the benefits of integration, plans to raise the subject of joining midway through the next parliament, although the matter will not form part of his election manifesto. Norway's two largest political parties, Labour and the Conservative Party, are largely pro-EU but supporters of EU membership say they are waiting for public opinion to stabilise before launching a third campaign. A new EU membership debate will be started after 2007, when a date for a referendum will be set and, pending a positive outcome, negotiations will be launched on Norway's accession.
•  Switzerland – Signed the EEA agreement and submitted an application for EU membership in May 1992, but a national referendum held in December 1992 rejected EEA membership, and the EU negotiations were abandoned, although the application for EU membership was not withdrawn. The Swiss government's stated long-term aims are met [1]. A recent study by the Demoscope Institute found that 51% percent of those polled were against EU membership.
•  Morocco – Submitted application to join the EU (then EEC) in July 1987, but turned down (later in the year) by the Council for non-compliance with the geographic criteria.
•  Albania – Started negotiations on Stabilisation and Association Agreement in 2003.
•  Serbia and Montenegro – Started negotiations on Stabilisation and Association Agreement in November 2005, following favourable Feasibility Study and decision to open negotiations on October 3, 2005.
•  Bosnia and Herzegovina – Started negotiations on Stabilisation and Association Agreement in November 2005.

Image File history File links Flag_of_Norway. ... 1992 (MCMXCII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday. ... A referendum (plural: referendums or referenda) or plebiscite is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. ... 1972 was a leap year that started on a Saturday. ... 1994 was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ... This is a list of Viceroys (Rigsstatholder) and Prime Ministers (statsminister) of Norway. ... Kjell Magne Bondevik (born September 3, 1947) is a Norwegian Lutheran minister and politician. ... The Norwegian Labour Party (Det norske Arbeiderpartiet, DNA or Arbeiderpartiet, AP) is a social democratic political party in Norway. ... The Conservative Party (Høyre or Høgre, H, meaning right) is a Norwegian political party. ... 2007 (MMVII) will be a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Switzerland. ... Map of the EEA countries. ... A referendum (plural: referendums or referenda) or plebiscite is a direct vote in which an entire electorate is asked to either accept or reject a particular proposal. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Morocco. ... The European Community (EC), most important of three European Communities, was originally founded on March 25, 1957 by the signing of the Treaty of Rome under the name of European Economic Community. ... 1987 is a common year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The European Council, informally called the European summit, is a meeting of the heads of state or government of the European Union, and the President of the European Commission. ... The Copenhagen criteria are the rules that define whether a nation is eligible to join the European Union. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Albania. ... A European Union Association Agreement (Association Agreement) is a treaty between the European Union (EU) and a non-EU country that creates a framework for co-operation between them. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Serbia_and_Montenegro. ... A European Union Association Agreement (Association Agreement) is a treaty between the European Union (EU) and a non-EU country that creates a framework for co-operation between them. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Bosnia_and_Herzegovina. ... A European Union Association Agreement (Association Agreement) is a treaty between the European Union (EU) and a non-EU country that creates a framework for co-operation between them. ...

Special member state territories

• For information about EU territories and dependents outside continental Europe, see Special member state territories and their relations with the EU.

Two parts of the treaty of the European Community deal with special relationships: Article 299 which sets out the territories to which the treaty applies, supplemented by the accession treaties; and Articles 182-188 and Annex II on association with the non-European countries and territories which have special relations...

See also

• List of European Union-related topics
• European Union statistics

European Union. ... The European Union has 25 member states as of 1 May 2004. ...

References

• The European Union at a glance

External links

Maps of the EU are available from the European Commission: [2] The European Commission (formally the Commission of the European Communities) is the executive of the European Union. ...

	European Union and candidates for enlargement
Austria | Belgium | Cyprus | Czech Republic | Denmark | Estonia | Finland | France | Germany | Greece | Hungary | Ireland | Italy | Latvia | Lithuania | Luxembourg | Malta | Netherlands | Poland | Portugal | Slovakia | Slovenia | Spain | Sweden | United Kingdom
Acceding countries joining on January 1, 2007: Bulgaria | Romania / Other recognised candidate countries: Croatia | Macedonia | Turkey