Progress towards Schengen accession

Romania's progress towards joining the free movement area was discussed in Luxembourg

Daniela Budu, 20.10.2023, 14:02

The European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, praised Romanias progress in terms of border control, migration and asylum, during talks at the Justice and Home Affairs Council in Luxembourg, organized by the Spanish Presidency of the Council of the European Union. I am optimistic, because Romania and Bulgaria prove every time and with every project that they are ready, the European official said. According to a press release of the Interior Ministry in Bucharest, the delegations of Romania and Bulgaria presented the measures adopted to strengthen border control and EU security.

A focal point of the Romanian delegation’s intervention was the presentation of the excellent results of the pilot project that Romania and the European Commission agreed on in March 2023, which has already been implemented at the border with Serbia for the last 6 months, the press release reads. The European official was impressed by the success of the project, emphasizing that, due to the excellent results of the measures implemented by Romania, the country is a model for all member states. Moreover, the Commissioner said, the good results achieved by Romania and Bulgaria in the management of pilot projects regarding migration, are one more argument in favor of the country joining Schengen. In its turn, the Spanish presidency of the Council of the EU reconfirmed that the completion of the two countries’ accession process is its priority, for which it will continue to work, in the hope that it will be a success.

It should also be mentioned that a number of member states recognized the progress made by the two countries and supported, in Luxembourg, the accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen area. Austria and the Netherlands, which had blocked the accession of the two countries at the end of last year, did not present at the Council any argument for blocking their entry.

The Home Affairs Council does not involve a vote or a promise for securing Schengen accession for Romania and Bulgaria, but the fact that all member states discussed the subject once again, cannot be overlooked. All these took place in the context of the Council’s decision to resume checks at some of the continents most important borders, against the current European background marked by migration and terrorist threats. Thus, the EU interior ministers admitted, during the meeting, that member states must better check migrants and asylum seekers and expel faster those considered a security risk. Consequently, ten countries have introduced temporary checks at their borders, some on their entire border, and others only on parts of it. The main reason is the conflict between Israel and Palestine, which could increase the risk of violence inside Europe, as it happened in the case of the attack in Belgium. (EE)