On May 1st Poland will be celebrating the 10th anniversary of its accession to the European Union. Nine other European countries acceded to the EU on that day: Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Malta, Slovenia and Hungary. Poland became a full-fledged Member State pursuant to the Treaty of Accession, signed on April 16th, 2003 in Athens, but the actual process of its integration with the EU had begun as early as in 1994 when Poland filed its application to become a member of the European Union that was ratified by all Member States at the Essen meeting of the European Council on December 9?10, 1994. The Schuman Parade is organised every year to mark Poland?s accession to the EU, with people parading with the Polish and EU?s flags through the streets of Warsaw to the sound of the European anthem the ?Ode to Joy.?
