In a ceremony at the foot of the Acropolis in Athens, leaders from the 15 current member states and 10 future EU countries signed treaties on 16 April that clear the path to the bloc's enlargement

The so-called Treaty of Accession removes an obstacle to the largest expansion in the EU's history. Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia are expected to join the European Union in May 2004. The current and new members of the organization issued a joint statement pledging to "continue to uphold and defend human rights, both inside and outside the EU, including the fight against all types of discrimination". European Commission President Romano Prodi called the ceremony "the highest moment of my presidency." Guenter Verheugen, European commissioner for enlargement, called on the roughly 75 million citizens of the newly admitted states to participate in their national referendums on accession "because it is a decision for the whole century and for the generations to come."