Here is a concise summary of the text, highlighting the key events and developments in the history of the European Union:
**Post-WWII (1945-1957)**
* End of WWII, emergence of US and USSR as superpowers, and start of the Cold War
* European unity concept takes hold, leading to:
1. **European Coal and Steel Community (1951)**: 6 founding countries (France, Germany, Italy, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg)
2. **Treaties of Rome (1957)**: Establishment of European Economic Community (EEC) and European Atomic Energy Community
**Expansion and Deepening (1958-1992)**
* **Enlargements**: UK, Ireland, Denmark (1973); Greece (1981); Spain, Portugal (1986)
* **Single European Act (1986)**: Aimed to create a single market by 1993
* **Maastricht Treaty (1992)**: Created the European Union (EU) and laid the groundwork for a single currency (Euro)
**EU Development and Challenges (1993-2020)**
* **Euro introduction (1999, circulated in 2002)**
* **Eastern Enlargements**: 10 countries joined in 2004; Bulgaria, Romania (2007); Croatia (2013)
* **Treaty of Lisbon (2007)**: Strengthened EU functioning
* **European sovereign-debt crisis (2009-2015)**: Austerity measures implemented in several countries
* **Migration crisis (2015)**: EU response included border control reinforcements and agreements with Turkey and Libya
* **Brexit (2020)**: United Kingdom's withdrawal from the EU, leaving 27 member states with a population of approximately 450 million.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text, numbered and in short sentences:
**Early Years of the EU**
1. WWII ends with the European continent devastated (circa 1945)
2. The US and USSR emerge as the two major world powers (circa 1945)
3. The Cold War begins due to the growing rivalry between the US and USSR (circa 1945)
4. France proposes a Franco-German reconciliation on May 9, 1950.
5. Six countries sign a treaty establishing the European Coal and Steel Community (1951)
6. West Germany joins the European Coal and Steel Community (1951)
**Expansion and Treaties**
7. The Treaty of Rome is signed on March 25, 1957, creating the European Economic Community.
8. The European Atomic Energy Community is established by the second Treaty of Rome (1957)
9. The Treaties of Rome enter into force in 1958.
10. The United Kingdom's first accession request is vetoed by France (circa 1960s)
11. The United Kingdom, Ireland, and Denmark join the Community in 1973.
12. Greece joins the Community in 1981; Greenland leaves after a referendum.
13. Spain and Portugal join the Community in 1986.
14. The Single European Act is signed in 1986, aiming to remove obstacles to free movement.
**Modern Developments**
15. The Berlin Wall falls, leading to German reunification (circa 1990)
16. The Maastricht Treaty is signed on February 7, 1992, creating the European Union.
17. The European Union is established, with new powers, in 1993.
18. Austria, Sweden, and Finland join the EU in 1995.
19. The Schengen Agreement is gradually introduced from 1995, abolishing border controls.
20. The Euro is officially launched on the market in 1999.
**Enlargement and Challenges**
21. 10 new countries join the European Union on May 1, 2004.
22. Romania and Bulgaria join the European Union on January 1, 2007.
23. The Treaty of Lisbon is signed in 2007, aiming to strengthen the EU's functioning.
24. Croatia joins the European Union in 2013.
25. Over a million migrants enter the Schengen area in 2015.
26. The United Kingdom votes to leave the European Union in a referendum (June 2016)
27. The United Kingdom exits the EU on January 31, 2020.
**Current State**
28. The European Union has 27 member states with a population of about 450 million (as of 2020)
29. Negotiations are underway for the accession of new countries, mostly in the Balkans.
30. 19 countries are members of the eurozone; six others have adopted the euro without being eurozone members.
31. The Schengen area comprises 26 states, including four non-EU members.