On 24 April, the European Parliament, EU and Member States representatives, celebrated the 20th anniversary of the 2004 EU enlargement. President von der Leyen highlighted the many benefits that EU membership brought to the then-new Member States, while also underlining the many advantages that the Union itself drew from this enlargement.
On 1 May 2004, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Hungary, Malta, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia all joined the EU. In her speech, President von der Leyen described this important day as the fulfillment of Europe's promise.
Addressing those Member States, she emphasised that in the years since then, "your economies have boomed. Your agricultural production has tripled. Your unemployment rates have been cut by half. The power of Europe, together with your ingenuity, has brought a true economic miracle to all your countries."
This benefit was all but one-sided. At the same time, "people and companies across Europe have enjoyed new opportunities to study and work, export and invest in a wider Union," thanks to the new members that joined the European family in 2004, which also strengthened Europe's response to the geopolitical challenges we face.
President von der Leyen also commended her predecessor, former President Prodi, on his vision that the 2004 enlargement would not be the last one. She highlighted that "since then, three more countries have joined our Union" and that "today, the desire to unite Europe and complete our Union is more important than ever before".
"The Western Balkans is moving ever closer to us. We took the historic decision to launch negotiations with Ukraine and Moldova, while the people of Georgia make no secret of their European dreams", the President continued.
Russia's war of aggression against Ukraine has further created a new sense of urgency to unite our European family. The President emphasised that a victory of Putin "would change the course of European history".
The military assistance from the United States and the European Union "is an encouragement for us to do even more". "For Europe to win the future – just as it did 20 years ago – Ukraine must win", the President concluded.
