Brussels: Forty years ago, Spain and Portugal joined the European Union, making it culturally richer and politically stronger, the European Commission said ahead of the two countries' accession anniversary on January 1.
According to Cyprus News Agency, their membership helped create millions of new jobs, modernize economies, and deepen trade ties within Europe and beyond, as stated on the Commission's official website.
The Commission highlighted that over £250 billion was invested in Spanish and Portuguese regions, more than £20 billion in EU funding was allocated to researchers, and over 140,000 projects benefited from the EU's fisheries funds.
In these forty years, Europeans have enjoyed more rights, better health, and additional freedoms, the Commission added. It emphasized that "Spain and Portugal have reinforced democracy and advanced social progress," broadening Europe's global outlook, particularly towards Latin America, Africa, and the Mediterranean. The EU, Spain, and Portugal "have grown stronger together" over these decades.