Bulgaria and Romania are expecting a positive decision on their full Schengen Zone accession on December 12, the President of Bulgaria, Rumen Radev, has said.
However, the Bulgarian President called on authorities not to rush into speculations on the matter, Schengen.News reports.
Radev’s comments came in response to the recent statements made by the Prime Minister of Romania, Marcel Ciolacu.
The Romanian PM recently said that Romania and Bulgaria will become full members of the Schengen Zone from January 2025.
The President of Bulgaria said that there will be no difference between Sofia and Bucharest on their journey towards full Schengen accession, as reported by the Bulgarian News Agency.
Important Meeting of Interior Ministers Will Be Held on November 22
Austrian Minister of Interior Gerhard Karner met with his counterpart from Romania, Catalin Predoiu, in Vienna on November 18.
In addition, on November 22, another meeting will be held between interior ministers of Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, and Austria.
During this meeting, topics such as border protection and the fight against organised human trafficking are expected to be discussed, in addition to the development of a joint package and additional measures following the partial accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the Schengen Zone.
The full membership of Bulgaria and Romania in the Schengen Zone was delayed in spite of the fact that the two Balkan countries had met technical conditions since 2011. However, Austria opposed the full accession of these two countries over irregular migration concerns.
In the case of Bulgaria, the membership was also opposed by the Netherlands, but both countries have changed their stance on the matter.
Following Austria’s approval, Bulgaria and Romania joined the Schengen Zone on March 31, 2024, partially. However, land border controls still remain effective.
Recently, Romania’s Interior Minister, Cătălin Predoiu, said that the “pieces are quite well placed” for the Schengen accession of Romania and Bulgaria in terms of land borders.
Minister Predoiu said his county is optimistic about the progress of the full Schengen Membership after the November 22 meeting.
The European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) recently called on the European Union Council to set a date for full membership of Bulgaria and Romania in the Schengen Zone.
Source: https://schengen.news/positive-decision-on-full-schengen-accession-for-bulgaria-romania-expected-on-december-12-bulgarian-president-says/
