The attention of the peoples of Europe and beyond will be focused on the 10 countries acceding to the European Union on May 1. It is, after all, the largest unification that the old continent has experienced since the Holy Roman Empire.

Many Europeans see this enlargement as the process that finally undoes the division created by the Iron Curtain half a century ago. Political pundits see in this enlargement much more than a change in systems of government. Besides being a unique and innovative model of governance, the enlarged European Union will bring about an awareness and appreciation of the culture of each individual country.

One of the primary objectives of a united Europe is cross cultural dialogue. This objective underpins the philosophy of the European educational and cultural programmes. An unplanned and unprecedented process which will definitely lead to cross cultural awareness is the waves of journalists who are touring acceding countries, giving their cultures a closer look and transmitting their findings to prime time cultural programmes or popular magazines.

This buzz is already being felt even in Malta. Just last week, I was interviewed by a French journalist who is preparing a week-long series of features to be aired on the national French television station RTEL. She was just the last in a string of media people who in recent months have spent days with us, querying our culture, comparing and contrasting the way we live.

There is very little doubt that the uniqueness of this historic day will remain etched in the memories of all Europeans for a long time to come. All of us owning a television set remember how we tuned in to see how the different countries celebrated the ushering in of the new millennium. On April 30, Malta will be on the centre stage with nine other countries. The eyes of at least 400 million people will be watching to see how we want to project ourselves. After all, the way we dress for a party says something about our individual characters.

We started planning the events around May 1 by choosing the most photogenic of Maltese sites - the Grand Harbour fortifications. Besides being typical of our Maltese historic environment, this setting evokes our varied history, our habitats, traditional and modern industries.

The content of the show will be both a reflection of our cultural talent and tastes. That is why we have included avante garde technology with local talent, local artists with foreign cult figures. We truly believe that Malta has the talent, the tastes and the aspirations of a modern country.

International TV coverage was an intrinsic part of the tender for the main celebrations. Through good planning we know that three different events will definitely be broadcast to hundreds of millions of people. During the days marking our formal entry to the EU, it will not be the casual viewer looking for an image who would be forming an impression about Malta, but also the journalists, culture buffs, students. We know of tourists who are coming specifically to Malta to live with us this unique moment. That is why we spanned the celebrations over 24 days and why we launched them weeks in advance.

The way we project ourselves will influence our tourism, what interest we garnish from prospective investors, the respect that we will enjoy from our partners. We only have one chance to achieve a good first impression.

Mr Mugliett is Minister for Youth and the Arts.