Romanian – American cooperation in homeland security
Talks were held in Washington on the Visa Waiver programme, migration and borders.
Daniela Budu, 23.02.2026, 14:00
The Romanian interior minister and deputy PM Cătălin Predoiu had a bilateral meeting in Washington on Friday with the US secretary of homeland security, Kristi Noem, during which topics on the joint cooperation agenda were addressed.
According to a news release issued by the Romanian interior ministry, one of the topics discussed was the Visa Waiver programme. “The Romanian side emphasised the major public interest that this topic has in Romania, and presented the technical instruments already operational. An agreement was reached to carry on the dialogue and cooperation on this topic,” the news release reads.
Although Romania was to join the programme on March 31, 2025, the US government suspended a decision in this respect indefinitely. The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), where the two officials met, is reviewing Romania’s inclusion in the programme. According to the Romanian authorities, Bucharest has fulfilled all its obligations and technical criteria for accession, including a visa refusal rate below 3%.
In Washington, the two officials also discussed migration management, border security, fighting organised crime and emerging threats, including risks linked to cross-border crime. The role of the Transnational Criminal Investigative Unit in Bucharest was highlighted, a structure created by the interior ministry and the DHS and unique in the region, which works as a regional hub covering the neighboring Western Balkans, the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine.
Cătălin Predoiu presented the advanced programmes implemented by his ministry together with the DHS with respect to the identification and prevention of security threats, such as the Enhanced Border Security Partnership (EBSP) and the Automated Targeting System – Global (ATS-G) programme. As emphasised during the meeting, Romania is one of the few countries to have implemented the EBSP. In this context, Bucharest proposed that the American side considered strengthening the presence of DHS officials within the Romanian unit, and the US received this option ‘with interest’, the news release also says.
On the other hand, at the Department of Justice in Washington, Cătălin Predoiu discussed with the US Attorney General Pam Bondi about the cooperation between Romanian interior ministry forces and law enforcement agencies in the US. “The cooperation enhances the efficiency of the interior ministry in protecting Romanian citizens and Romania’s borders,” Cătălin Predoiu argued.
And in a meeting with a delegation of senior FBI officials, bilateral talks focused on developing operational cooperation methods within mixed teams to fight transnational organised crime groups, drug trafficking, illegal migration, human trafficking, cybercrime and terrorism. (AMP)
