Why is the EU's flag designed with 12 stars? Which are the EU's biggest and  smallest countries?

These were among a set of simple questions asked in the video clip released by the European Parliament Office and the European Commission Representation in Malta to mark Europe Day, which is celebrated today.

The answers elicited contrasting views of the public - including those of a few known faces - reflecting the EU's own diversity.

On May 9, 1950, the then French Foreign Minister Robert Schuman presented a declaration in which he proposed the pooling of resources between European countries. The 'Schuman Declaration' is considered as the birth of what is today the European Union.

"World peace cannot be safeguarded without the making of creative efforts proportionate to the dangers which threaten it. Europe will not be made all at once, or according to a single plan. It will be built through concrete achievements which first create a de facto solidarity," the declaration said.