Europe Day: Speech by Ambassador Sandra Kramer, 9 May 2025

Delegation of the European Union to South Africa Europe Day: Speech by Ambassador Sandra Kramer 9 May 2025 Honourable Deputy Minister Nel, our guest of honour,Excellencies, Dean of the Diplomatic Corps,Representatives of the private sector, civil society and other partners,Colleagues and Friends On behalf of the European Union and its Member States accredited to South Africa, it is a great pleasure for me to welcome you to our Europe Day celebration. Seventy-five years ago, Robert Schuman, the father of what is now called the European Union, said: “Europe will not be made all at once, or according to a single plan. It will be built through concrete achievements which first create a de facto solidarity”. And this is how a small community of just 6 countries dealing with coal and steel created in 1952 has evolved into what is today a thriving Union of 27 European Member States. With different languages. Different landscapes. Different humour. Different tastes – by the way, you can get a taste of all of this today, with Member States proudly displaying their countries’ culinary specialties. But all European Union Member States stand united – in their diversity. And together, we make the European Union more than the sum of its parts. Robert Schuman himself was born a German citizen in another country, Luxembourg, and later nationalised French. Today, millions of Europeans travel across Europe without the need for a passport or the need to change currency. Italians study in The...