EDUCATION

Frequently Asked Questions within the Project “Let’s Learn about Europe”

How many Member States are there in the EU?
The European Union presently has 25 Member States. Originally there were six – France, Germany , Italy , Belgium , Holland , and Luxemburg. In the year 1973 the first enlargement took place when Great Britain , Ireland , and Denmark joined the Union . Greece accessed in 1981 and Austria , Finland and Sweden in 1985. In May 2004 the biggest enlargement so far happened – the EU got 10 new Member States ( Hungary , Slovenia , Latvia , Lithuania , Estonia , Cyprus , Malta , Slovakia , Czech Republic and Poland ).

Is the Council of Europe the same as the European Council?
No. The Council of Europe is an individual international organization, whereas the European Council is one of the institutions of the European Union. The European Council is composed of the heads of states and governments of the Member States. Serbia is a member of the Council of Europe, but not of the EU. More on the Council of Europe on http://www.coe.int/.

When will Serbia become a Member State of the European Union?
The European Union perceives Serbia as a part of the Western Balkans, which is apart from Serbia made of Montenegro , Albania , Bosnia and Herzegovina , Croatia and Macedonia . A special policy which is called the Process of Stabilization and Association is being applied to the Western Balkans. Thus, Serbia will firstly become an associate state, and then a Member State . The Process of Stabilization and Association implies several stages, within which, among the sates of the Western Balkan, Croatia has achieved most. Serbia is now expecting the continuation of the talks with the EU, whereupon the signing of the Stabilization and Association Agreement should ensue which will ensure associate country status to Serbia .
After receiving that status Serbia could apply for the status of a candidate country for the membership in the EU, and having been granted that status the negotiations on the accession will start. If these talks are successfully terminated Serbia will sign the EU Accession Treaty and become its full member.

Can I travel to all the states of the EU with a Schengen visa?
Not all the states are both the members of the EU and the signatory countries of the Schengen Agreement, and it is not possible to travel to those countries with a visa issued from some of the member states of the EU. Those countries are, first of all, Great Britain , and Ireland . Ten states that joined the EU in 2004 are still not allowed to issue Schengen visas, but with a Schengen visa issued by some other member state of the EU their territory can be entered. On the other hand, Switzerland , Norway and Iceland are the signatories of the Schengen Agreement, but are not members of the EU.

Do all the Member States of the EU use the Euro as their currency?
Only twelve member states of the EU use the euro. Those are: Belgium , Germany , Greece , Spain , Luxemburg , Italy , France , Portugal , Holland , Ireland , Finland and Austria . These states form together so-called Eurozone which means that they use the euro and run a single monetary policy. The euro is also used in Montenegro , Vatican , Andorra , Monaco and San Marino which are not members of the EU.