EU Commission asks Council to allow Romania and Bulgaria to join Schengen in 2023

2023-05-17 10:15:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

EU Commission asks Council to allow Romania and Bulgaria to join Schengen in

The EU Commission has asked the Council to enable Romania and Bulgaria to become full members of the Schengen Area in 2023, in the second Schengen Situation Report, published today, 16 May, ahead of the second Council of Schengen to be held on June 8.

In the report, the EU Commission listed the bloc's main achievements in relation to its border-free zone, and key priorities for 2023, which it called on the current and future Council presidencies to focus on and work on. reports SchengenVisaInfo.com.

"Schengen enlargement: The Commission once again calls on the Council to further strengthen European unity and allow Romania and Bulgaria to fully join Schengen," the statement said.

In addition, the Commission has considered Croatia's accession to the Schengen Area as one of the main achievements of the bloc a year ago.

Commenting on the report, Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson also listed Croatia's membership as one of the bloc's key achievements, while calling the Schengen Area "the heart of Europe" that connects Member States.

"Operationally, the increase in police cooperation will enable better exchange of information, monitoring of borders, visas and the risk of organized crime. Representation has been intensified with improved annual Schengen evaluations, contact with the Schengen Coordinator and more high-level Council discussions. Our membership has grown with the accession of Croatia on January 1st, the latest country on our growing list," said Commissioner Johansson.

And while Croatia joined on January 1, Romania and Bulgaria are still waiting, with their membership largely opposed by Austria.

In late April, Foreign Minister Alexander Schallenberg told Politico.eu that Austria would hold its veto on expanding the Schengen area with Bulgaria and Romania until the country sees a "sustainable decline" in asylum seekers as asylum applications in Austria nearly tripled in 2022, reaching around 110,000. At the same time, Austria's Interior Minister, Gerhard Karner, had claimed that seven percent of those smuggling immigrants into Austria were Romanians.

However, despite Austria's rejection, several other EU countries firmly support the membership of these two countries in the Schengen Area, in particular countries such as Germany and Hungary.

In addition to urging the Council to support the expansion of the border-free zone, the Commission has outlined other key priorities in its Southern state, some of which are as follows:

-Implementation of the Entry-Exit System as part of efforts to further strengthen the EU's external borders

-Maximizing the use of SIS to make the return system more effective

-Replacing long-term internal border controls with alternative measures of police cooperation,

- Alignment of visa policies of third country partners with that of the EU

-Abolition of citizenship and residency schemes for risky investors

The Member States are expected to meet on June 8 at the second Schengen Council, where these priorities and others listed in the report published today are expected to be discussed. / CNA.al