In the aftermath of WWII, on this day in 1950 the then French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman made the Schuman Declaration in which he urged European nations, France and Germany above all, to pool their cool and steel production to create a common area of peace. Little could he know of what Europe would be 68 years later, that is the largest single market in the world and an incredibly competitive innovative economy. But Europe is much more than money, as it is a common area of and for peace and security, values that are, alas, becoming more and more underrated, a common area of rights and justice in a world where they’re hard to find, a common area of innovation where knowledge and access to it are free, but most importantly it’s an area of people: 24 languages spoken in 28 countries where half a billion people live, each of us as different in our own ideas and dreams as similar in our shared history, people that are free to travel, to work, to study, to bring their experiences across the Union, thus creating a shared area of freedom. None of this would have been achievable if we hadn’t been together putting aside selfishness and nationalism, things that are just absurd and anachronistic; it would be an insult to our past not to seek for a common future. So, happy Europe Day! 😊 🇪🇺
“Europe will not be made all at once, or according to a single plan. It will be built through concrete achievements which first create a de facto solidarity” ~ Robert Schuman
