On Sunday, Croatia adopted the euro and removed dozens of border checkpoints to become the 27th nation to join Europe's passport-free Schengen zone.
Though Croatia joined the EU 10 years ago, Croatian Prime Minister Andrej Plenković helped urge along the economic management reforms needed for the Balkan nation of 4 million to officially join the eurozone, Politico reports. Speaking during the celebrations, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen described the new euro coin imprinted with a pine marten, from which Croatia's former currency, the kuna, derives its name, as "a symbol of the successful union between your national identity and your European destiny" and said the euro "brings macroeconomic stability and credibility."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Sodium batteries could make electric flight viableUnder the Radar Low-cost fuel cell has higher energy density and produces chemical by-product that could absorb CO2 from the atmosphere
-
Flying into dangerFeature America's air traffic control system is in crisis. Can it be fixed?
-
Pocket change: The demise of the pennyFeature The penny is being phased out as the Treasury plans to halt production by 2026
-
White House tackles fake citations in MAHA reportspeed read A federal government public health report spearheaded by Robert F. Kennedy Jr. was rife with false citations
-
Judge blocks push to bar Harvard foreign studentsspeed read Judge Allison Burroughs sided with Harvard against the Trump administration's attempt to block the admittance of international students
-
Trump's trade war whipsawed by court rulingsSpeed Read A series of court rulings over Trump's tariffs renders the future of US trade policy uncertain
-
Elon Musk departs Trump administrationspeed read The former DOGE head says he is ending his government work to spend more time on his companies
-
Trump taps ex-personal lawyer for appeals courtspeed read The president has nominated Emil Bove, his former criminal defense lawyer, to be a federal judge
-
US trade court nullifies Trump's biggest tariffsspeed read The US Court of International Trade says Trump exceeded his authority in imposing global tariffs
-
Trump pauses all new foreign student visasspeed read The State Department has stopped scheduling interviews with those seeking student visas in preparation for scrutiny of applicants' social media
-
Trump pardons Virginia sheriff convicted of briberyspeed read Former sheriff Scott Jenkins was sentenced to 10 years in prison on federal bribery and fraud charges
