Brussels, 10/05/2002 (Agence Europe) - "No, Europe will not change its flag. Twelve stars on sa blue background are and will remain the symbol of the European Union: , European commission President Romano Prodi assured in the pages of the Corriere della Sera of 10 May, following articles that had reported rumours started in The Independent according to which stripes of the flags of all 15 member countries would in future appear on the European flag. Some of the British media obviously jumped on the opportunity: for The Sun, the flag would look more like a deckchair, whereas the Mirror referred to a fruit salad and the Express as the "flag version of the European Song contest".
Unfortunately for them, it's false, Prodi confirmed, recalling that the Commission (and Belgian Presidency) had asked a dozen or so intellectuals and prominent Europeans from the artistic word to come up with ideas to make Brussels more visible as capital of Europe. The Dutch architect and urbanist, Rem Koolhas "decided to "play" with imagination (…) with the symbols of Europe: a statue at the entry to the European Parliament, the symbols of different Union institutions, the geographic map and, precisely, the European flag", replied Prodi, adding: it's a game, as stipulated by a note I had distributed by my services, whereas I remain attached to the blue flag with the twelve stars as, moreover, "if someone per chance wanted to doubt all that, as well as Beethoven's "Hymn to Joy", which is the official hymn of united Europe".