Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania’s accession to Schengen on the agenda of the Czech Presidency of the Council of the EU

The Czech Presidency of the Council of the European Union invited the interior ministers of Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania to Prague on September 13 to discuss the accession of the three Balkan countries to the Schengen area.

Such an announcement was confirmed by the Romanian deputy, Rareș Bogdan, SchengenVisaInfo.com reports.

“Czech Deputy Prime Minister Vit Rakušan, also Minister of the Interior, stated a few minutes ago before the European Parliament’s LIBE (Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs) Committee that one of the ambitions of the Czech Presidency of the EU is to speed up the accession procedures for Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia”, Rareș Bogdan (PNL) highlighted this through a post on his Facebook page.

In addition, the Minister added that measures should be taken so that Romania and Bulgaria, which have met all the technical conditions since 2011, can benefit from this status, while stressing that everything depends on the second round of discussions, scheduled for the end of this month.

Bogdan stressed that Germany supports the country’s joining the borderless Schengen area.

Previously, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz announced his support for Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania joining the Schengen area, while he added that these three countries had met all the conditions to become full members of the Schengen area while suggesting that the EU fill in the remaining gaps.

“Thank you; we are waiting for concrete things! Romanians have spent a lot to secure the borders; they meet the technical criteria of 2011, so keeping them at the gate is unfair, not to mention immoral. Hungary, the member state the most Eurosceptic, to be elegant, is in Schengen, and Romania, the most Euro-optimistic, is not. he added, as Romania Insider reports.

The Justice and Home Affairs Council (JHA), where Romania’s accession to Schengen could be discussed, is scheduled for 13 October.

The leaders of Romania and Bulgaria have again urged EU experts to reassess the two countries’ readiness to join the EU’s Schengen area, urging them to make a decision at a meeting of leaders to be held in December.

These comments came from Bulgarian Deputy Foreign Minister Kostadin Kodzhabashev.

Recently, the EU Commission asked the European Council to adopt a decision to allow Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia to become members of the Schengen area; however, this process has not yet been finalized.