The time for full membership of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen Area has not yet arrived, Austria’s Minister of the Interior, Gerhard Karner, has said.
While Vienna changed its stance on the matter in December 2023, agreeing for partial accession of these two countries by air and sea, with regards to land borders, Karner said, “We are on the right track, but not at the end of the road”, as quoted by Kurier.
The Minister’s comments came ahead of the Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) Council meeting of October 10, Schengen.News reports.
Yesterday, the holder of the presidency of the Council of the European Union, Hungary, reported on the progress made by these two countries on the full application of the Schengen acquis at the JHA meeting in Luxembourg. However, no vote was included in this agenda.
To set the date for abolishing land border controls, a further decision by the Council is needed.
Romanian PM: The Country Will Acquire Full Membership This Year
Emphasising that there was no vote on the agenda, the Prime Minister of Romania, Marcel Ciolacu, said it was highly unlikely that Austria would change its stance a few days after the elections in this country ended.
Ciolacu said that he is in contact with Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer to see what majority will be formed in Austria.
There is another JHA meeting, I believe, on December 11-13. I hope that by then, many things will be clarified.
the Prime Minister of Romania, Marcel Ciolacu
However, he was optimistic that his country’s full accession to the Schengen Zone would be finalised by the end of this year, according to a Digi 24 report.
Romania will join land Schengen this year.
the Prime Minister of Romania, Marcel Ciolacu
Bulgaria: Decision on Full Admission to Schengen to Come Soon
The caretaker Interior Minister of Bulgaria, Atanas Ilkov, who was present in yesterday’s JHA Council meeting, said that Bulgaria and Romania received serious support when EU ministers discussed the full application of the Schengen acquis.
Atanas said the support for both countries resulted in everything that both countries achieved and reported on October 10.
We hope to receive the long-awaited positive decision soon. I would not like to comment on deadlines.
The caretaker Interior Minister of Bulgaria Atanas Ilkov
He added that there is no requirement that these countries have not fulfilled.
The European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, earlier this week said that her message to the Justice and Home Affairs Council at the October 10 meeting will be that both Romania and Bulgaria must become full members of the Schengen Area by the end of this year.
Irregular Migration Concerns Impede Austria to Support Full Schengen Accession for Romania & Bulgaria
Romania and Bulgaria met all the technical requirements to enter the EU’s borderless area in 2011. However, the issue is yet to be finalised.
Citing irregular migration concerns, Austria blocked the accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen Zone on January 1, 2023.
In December 2023, Bucharest and Sofia reached an agreement with Vienna for partial accession to Schengen, by air and sea, from March 31, 2024, following Austria’s “Air Schengen” proposal.
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Publish date : 2024-10-11 11:23:03
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The post Time Has Not Yet Arrived for Romania & Bulgaria’s Full Schengen Membership, Austria Says first appeared on Love Europe.
Author : love-europe
Publish date : 2024-10-11 18:37:58
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