Ceremony: Slovenia and EU Winners of Euro's Arrival in Slovenia

German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, said Slovenia's adoption of the euro was a "moving moment", especially considering that she personally saw two changes of currency - first when Germany was reunified and then in 2002, when the euro was introduced. According to Merkel, the euro is a visible sign of Europe's growing international clout as well as a symbol of EU integration. When one travels to another country and pays with their own currency, the euro makes it vivid how close the EU has grown, she said.

In memory of the historical event, Merkel gave Prime Minister Janez Jansa a German euro coin with the Brandenburg Gate on the national side, which she said was a symbol of what Europe has achieved. "This is actually a symbol that we have a united Europe again."

European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso labelled the adoption of the euro an "important historic step for Slovenia". But it is also an important step for the EU, as it proves that the eurozone is not a "private restricted club; the euro is truly a currency of the EU."

Merkel stressed that Slovenia was the first EU newcomer to adopt the euro and she encouraged other countries to follow suit and see for themselves that the single currency pays dividends.

Barroso went on to highlight the benefits of the euro, including the elimination of exchange cost and risk; relegating the threat of devaluation to history; and encouraging cross-border trade and investment inside the eurozone. It also guards against global economic shocks, he said, but added that only structural reforms could help countries achieve higher economic growth.

The head of the eurogroup, Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, said that despite the many tangible benefits of the euro, citizens may still revel in nostalgia about their former currencies. "It is crucial that we intensify our collective effort to explain to the citizens what the euro can do for them, and to caution them against asking the euro to perform where it simply cannot deliver," Juncker said.

The President of the European Central Bank Jean-Claude Trichet highlighted the fact that Slovenia had managed between 1995 and 2006 to increase its gross domestic product per person from 50% to almost 80% of EU's average. Saying he was confident Slovenia would continue pursuing the required policies, he called on other newcomers to follow Slovenia's example.

Italian Prime Minister Romano Prodi said that while the Slovenian achievement presented an example to other countries, its success was also of extreme importance to Italians, as Slovenia was their neighbouring country, which is closely connected to Italy in trade.

The addressed were wrapped up by Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa, who said the adoption of the euro was a big step for Slovenia, a small step for the European Monetary Union, and a step in the right direction at the right moment for the EU. Jansa believes the adoption of the euro is a "a timely response to the challenges of the future". "Since the disintegration of Yugoslavia, Slovenia has walked a successful path of development and transition. Today marks the landmark in another successful step," he said.

Also speaking at the event were Greek PM Kostas Karamanlis, Belgian's Guy Verhofstadt, Hungary's Ferenc Gyurcsany and Slovakia's Robert Fico.