17/03/2004 (Agence Europe) - At the 25th anniversary of the death of Jean Monnet (16 March 1979), a group of friends and former collaborators met at the Pantheon in Paris to place a wreath of flowers on the tomb of Monnet, who had been declared a "European citizen of honour" by the European Council in Luxembourg in 1976. On the eve of the entry of ten new Member States to the European Union, it should be noted that Jean Monnet was the "inspiration" together with Robert Schuman for the Declaration of 9 May 1950, which paved the way for the union of the peoples of Europe. As the European Council declared, "Jean Monnet made a resolute attack on the forces of inertia in the political and economic structures of Europe, with the goal of creating a new relationship between European countries and translating this into institutional terms". This homage to Jean Monnet is particularly important today, as pointed out by the European Commission, on the initiative of its president Romano Prodi.