2004 enlargement of the European Union

Historical eventDecember 132002

2004 enlargement of the European Union

European Union enlargement: The EU announces that Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia will become members on May 1, 2004.

Everything on December 13Original source
Photo: Rockcohen · CC BY-SA 2.0

In context

When
Friday, December 13 200224 years ago
Category
Historical eventA dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Era
21st century · 2000s
Recorded from
Wikipedia “On this day” feed

At a glance

Dates: From 2004-05-01.

Type: enlargement of the European Union.

Timeline

Follows: 1995 enlargement of the European Union. Followed by: 2007 enlargement of the European Union.

What happened

History Referendum results 77.3 / 100 Czechia 66.8 / 100 Estonia 83.8 / 100 Hungary 67.5 / 100 Latvia 91.1 / 100 Lithuania 53.6 / 100 Malta 77.6 / 100 Poland 93.7 / 100 Slovakia 89.6 / 100 Slovenia This section needs expansion . You can help by adding missing information . ( September 2011 ) See also: History of the European Union Background With the end of World War II in May 1945, Europe found itself divided between a capitalist Western Bloc and a communist Eastern Bloc ,

European Union enlargement: The EU announces that Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia will become members on May 1, 2004.

December 13 through the years

Other entries on the same calendar day, in order.

  1. 1989The Troubles
  2. 1991Croatian War of Independence
  3. 1994Flagship Airlines Flight 3379
  4. 1995Banat Air Flight 166
  5. 20012001 Indian Parliament attack
  6. 20022004 enlargement of the European Union
  7. 2003Iraq War
  8. 2007Treaty of Lisbon
  9. 20112011 Liège attack
  10. 2013Beyoncé
  11. 2019Jo Swinson

Also in 2002

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  • May 25China Airlines Flight 611China Airlines Flight 611 disintegrates in mid-air and crashes into the Taiwan Strait, with the loss of all 225 people on board.
  • June 14Near-Earth objectNear-Earth asteroid 2002 MN misses the Earth by 75,000 miles (121,000 km), about one-third of the distance between the Earth and the Moon.
  • January 3Second IntifadaSecond Intifada: Israeli forces seized MV Karine A, which was carrying 50 tons of smuggled weapons on behalf of the Palestinian Authority.
  • January 3Israeli–Palestinian conflictIsraeli–Palestinian conflict: Israeli forces seize the Palestinian freighter Karine A in the Red Sea, finding 50 tons of weapons.
  • May 4EAS Airlines Flight 4226One hundred three people are killed and 51 are injured in a plane crash near Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport in Kano, Nigeria.
  • July 31HamasHamas attackers detonated a bomb at the Mount Scopus campus of the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, killing nine students and injuring abo…

Everything we record for 2002 →

Sources

Cite this page

“2004 enlargement of the European Union”, What's On This Date, https://whatsonthisdate.com/app/event/2004-enlargement-of-the-european-union-2002-december-13, accessed October 29, 2026.

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Questions about this entry

When did 2004 enlargement of the European Union happen?

December 13 2002 — 24 years ago, on a Friday.

Where does this text come from?

Wikipedia “On this day” feed. Summaries are short adaptations that link back to the source, not reprints.

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