The goal specifically for the Directive 2012/29/EU, as stated by the European Union (EU), was to "improve the real, day to-day situation of millions of victims of crime across Europe to the greatest extent possible".[24] The EU's efforts to increase freedom of movement between states has resulted in a growing concern for maintaining the rights of citizens of the EU when visiting a different member state. The EU deemed that the most important way to solve this was to clearly outline the rights of victims, to strengthen and increase victims' rights as well as increase participation of victims in criminal proceedings.