The EU-Canada Trade Agreement and Visas for Romanian Citizens
Romania and Bulgaria said that they would only ratify the EU-Canada trade agreement if Canada removes visa requirements for their citizens traveling to that country.
Roxana Vasile, 20.10.2016, 13:27
Romania and Bulgaria are the only EU members whose citizens need visas to travel to Canada. This topic is on the agenda of the European Council in Brussels, focused on trade. Romania said it supported the trade agreement between the EU and the United States, but not the one with Canada, known as CETA. Romania has a simple condition: it would sign the document if Canada removes visa requirements for Romanians traveling there. The Bulgarian government said it also would be willing to sign the agreement if visas were removed for its citizens traveling to Canada. Here is what Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said before departing for Brussels:
“I hope we can reach an agreement with the Canadian side on the issue of removing visas for Romanians, and if a reasonable understanding is reached, we can overcome the reservations we have towards this agreement.
The same position was taken by Government spokesman Liviu Iolu:
“Considerable negotiation and diplomatic efforts have been made, and I remind you here of the two meetings between the prime ministers of Canada and Romania – one in Ottawa and another in New York, where a number of steps were agreed on for eliminating visas. Right now, Romania believes that an agreement for eliminating visas depends solely on a political decision. Technically, all the necessary steps have been made. And before an agreement can be reached, Romania cannot retract its reservations regarding CETA, the Canada-EU trade agreement.
Romania is also unhappy with the lack of European solidarity in the matter of visas, precisely because of all European countries, only Romanians and Bulgarians still need visas to travel to Canada, considering that European legislation requires for EU members to make a common front in issues having to do with visas, if some European citizens are subject to differential treatment. Moreover, considering that Canadians do not need visas for Europe, even the European Commission concluded in spring that it cannot invoke the principle of reciprocity, since its application would involve high costs for Canada. The Commission assured Bucharest and Sofia that it is making efforts to remove visa requirements for them, saying, however, that the two countries should not use this issue to hinder the trade agreement with Canada, which Brussels desires. In any case, according to Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, it would be reasonable for Romanians to travel to Canada without a visa starting next year.
(Translated by C. Cotoiu)
