'A small contribution to the Community of European Peoples'. In May 1962, the cartoonist, Berhendt, criticises the power of the dictators in Spain and Portugal, who exclude the Iberian Peninsula from the process of European integration.

On 8 October 1975, in the French daily newspaper Le Figaro, Raymond Aron highlights the differences between political developments under way in Portugal and those in Spain and the differences between the reactions of the United States and the Nine.

‘European Communities — Welcome to a united Europe!’ In 1985, German cartoonist, Hanel, illustrates Spain and Portugal’s accession to the European Communities which are divided and subject to internal disputes.

In March 1985, the federalist journal L’Europe en Formation welcomes the accession of Spain and Portugal to the European Communities and calls for a change in the decision-making process in order to ensure the viability of the Community system.

In April 1985, the German weekly magazine Der Spiegel reviews the potential advantages and disadvantages of the enlargement of the European Economic Community (EEC) to include Portugal and Spain.

On 27 May 1985, the Madrid daily newspaper El País considers the implications of the enlargement of the European Communities, on 1 January 1986, to include Spain and Portugal.

On 1 January 1986, Spain and Portugal officially become Member States of the European Community. On this occasion, the Luxemburger Wort reviews the respective strengths and weaknesses of the 12 Member States of the European Communities.

In April 1986, in an article in the periodical EFTA Bulletin, Sven Norberg, Director of Legal Affairs in the Secretariat of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA), analyses the consequences of the accession of Portugal and Spain to the European Economic Community (EEC) for the future of EFTA.

On 10 July 1986, in Luxembourg, Simone Veil, Chairman of the Liberal and Democratic Reformist Group in the European Parliament, gives an interview during which she welcomes the accession of Spain and Portugal to the European Communities, whilst highlighting the implications of this enlargement.

On 1 January 1986, the accession of Spain and Portugal brings the number of Member States of the European Communities to twelve.

In this interview, Catherine Lalumière, former French Junior Minister for European Affairs, describes the position adopted by French President François Mitterrand in 1984–1985, during the final stage of the negotiations for the accession of Spain and Portugal to the European Communities.

In this interview excerpt, Jacques Delors, President of the Commission of the European Communities from 1985 to 1995, discusses the negotiations that preceded the accession of Spain and Portugal to the European Communities, and particularly reflects on the role that he played in these negotiations.

On 9 July 1982, the European Parliament adopts a resolution in which it calls on the Commission and the Council to speed up the negotiations for the accession of Spain and Portugal to the European Economic Community (EEC).

On 9 July 1982, the European Parliament adopts a resolution in which it calls on the European Commission to indicate which proposals it intends to submit so that the enlargement to include Spain and Portugal does not lead to a weakening of the Community but rather represents an opportunity for a deepening of common policies and a strengthening of the decision-making process.

On 17 November 1982, the European Parliament adopts a resolution in which it considers, in particular, the political, institutional, economic, social and environmental implications of the future accession of Spain and Portugal to the European Economic Community (EEC).

On 17 November 1982, the European Parliament adopts a resolution in which it highlights the implications of the enlargement of the European Economic Community (EEC) to include Spain and Portugal, with particular regard to the special situation of their agriculture.

In a communication to the European Council of December 1982, the European Commission draws up a report detailing the problems associated with the enlargement of the European Communities to include Spain and Portugal and sets out proposals that are designed to speed up the integration of these two countries into the European Economic Community (EEC).

By resolution of 8 May 1985, the European Parliament gives its opinion on the Council's decision concerning the Community enlargement to include Spain and Portugal. The Parliament welcomes in particular the conclusion of the accession negotiations and declares its approval, with one exception, of the institutional agreements.

On 31 May 1985, the European Commission delivers a favourable opinion on the applications for accession to the European Communities by Portugal and Spain.

On 11 June 1985, the Council of the European Communities sets the conditions for Spain and Portugal’s accession to the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC).

On 12 June 1985, in Madrid and Lisbon, the Heads of State or Government of the Ten and those of Spain and Portugal sign the Treaty of Accession of Spain and Portugal to the European Economic Community (EEC) and to the European Atomic Energy Community (EAEC).

On 12 June 1985, the RTL editorial team looks back at the diplomatic negotiations that led to the accession of Spain and Portugal to the European Communities on 1 January 1986.

On 1 January 1986, the effective date of Spain and Portugal’s accession to the European Communities, the Spanish and Portuguese flags are hoisted for the first time in front of the seat of the European institutions in Brussels.