German-Polish border towns celebrate EU move east 20 years ago

Germany and Poland organized festivities in twin cities on their common border to mark the 20th anniversary of Poland’s accession to the European Union.

German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock and Polish Foreign Minister Radosław Sikorski met in Frankfurt an der Oder and Słubice on Wednesday.

The two visited the academic institution Collegium Polonicum in Słubice, on the Polish side, then attended a festival and crossed the Oder bridge to Frankfurt an der Oder, in Germany.

Baerbock classified May 1, 2004 as an “incredible moment” for the continent.

On that day, the former Eastern Bloc states of Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovenia, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland, as well as Malta and Cyprus, joined the EU in what is described as the “big bang” of enlargement. . .

“We, as countries, as societies, as Europe, have found the strength to overcome the division of Europe and have finally become a community of peace and freedom,” said Baerbock.

“Today we experience how much stronger we are as a common European Union of now 27,” she continued, saying unity has gone beyond the single market to encompass transport networks, joint law enforcement operations and cross-border relations.

On the same day 20 years ago, then German Foreign Minister Joschka Fischer and his counterpart Wlodzimierz Cimoszewicz inaugurated a new era of partnership on the Oder Bridge, shaking hands at midnight. The moment was welcomed by thousands of fans.

Poland and other former Soviet satellites are celebrating the anniversary of their EU accession against a backdrop of war, with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine now in its third year.

The events also have particular significance for Berlin and Warsaw, as Germany’s attack on Poland in September 1939 started the Second World War.