On October 10, the Hungarian Presidency of the European Union Council will introduce the current state of full implementation of the Schengen acquis in both Romania and Bulgaria at the Justice and Home Affairs (JHA) Council in Luxembourg.
The announcement was made by the European Council through an official statement, Schengen.News reports.
During this week’s meeting, the ministers will exchange views on the implementation of properties from the annual Schengen Council Cycle. The discussion will also be focused on the priority of strengthening the resilience of external borders.
In addition, the European Commission will also introduce the Schengen Barometer, focused on Schengen developments.
The European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johansson, said during the European Parliament’s plenary session that her message at the Justice and Home Affairs Council in Luxembourg would be that Romania and Bulgaria must become part of the Schengen Zone in terms of land borders by the end of this year.
From March 31 this year Bulgaria and Romania are part of the Schengen Area in terms of air and sea borders, however, controls for land borders continue to remain effective.
Last month, authorities in Bulgaria expressed their hope that the accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the Schengen Area, in terms of land borders, will be finalised by the end of this year.
The Hungarian EU Council Presidency, Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said that the government of Hungary is doing everything possible to ensure the full accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen Zone by the end of 2024.
Internal Border Controls Must Be a Temporary & Last Resort Measure
On September 16, Germany introduced border controls at all of its land borders, considering it an effective measure to combat irregular migration.
Such a decision sparked controversies among the bloc amid fears that it could have a domino effect on the EU.
In this regard, Johansson stressed that the reintroduction of internal border controls must be a temporary and last-resort measure.
Johansson said that “no passports and no lines, “this is what Europe is about.”
Source: https://schengen.news/romania-bulgarias-land-border-accession-to-schengen-to-be-reviewed-again/
