Romania Schengen entry decision postponed

The decision on Romania and Bulgaria’s entry in the Schengen area has been postponed until an unspecified date.

The Polish Presidency of the European Union has not put the matter to the vote of the Justice and Home Affairs Council, as two countries, namely the Netherlands and
Finland, have expressed their opposition in regard to Romania and Bulgaria’s entry in the Schengen border-free area.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Teodor Baconschi, stated that the postponement of the decision represented a compromise formula which maintained the discussion open, also specifying the fact that the Romanian state would try to convince the Netherlands and Finland to readjust their position.

"This is a compromise formula which maintains the discussion open. It is the most reasonable for us", Teodor Baconschi affirmed. He also considers the postponement of a decision as being, without any doubts, better for Romania.

"We have held constant dialogue with all the member states, even in New York, and we are still working on convincing the Dutch and the Finnish", the Minister of Foreign Affairs stated.

According to Teodor Baconschi, Romania has the support of the other European Union member countries concerning the Schengen entry.

"The subject will pass during the new Council and until the new Council we must rebuild a consensus. Practically, we have been assured and we have the support of the member countries. There are these two countries which, in a way, are committing an abuse, but they must be re-convinced. We must work, because the lack of trust is related to justice and internal affairs", the chief of diplomacy affirmed.

Finland "places a high value on trust"

"For Finland, when it comes to the extension of the Schengen area with Romania and Bulgaria, trust is also very important, not only the technical criteria", the Finnish Minister of Foreign Affairs, Päivi Räsänen, stated after the JHA Council reunion.

"We must have trust in the fact that the customs control is not corrupt", Päivi Räsänen explained, also highlighting the fact that Finland’s position is a consistent one.

The Finnish Government decided on Wednesday to join the Netherlands in the decision to stand against Romania and Bulgaria’s entry in the Schengen area.

Päivi Räsänen explained that the decision has been taken due to a series of weak developments concerning the rule of law in Bulgaria and Romania, the poor situation of minorities in those countries, government corruption and organised crime.

The Netherlands foresees a renegotiation of the subject in February 2012

The report of the European Commission on justice from February 2012 "will be a good opportunity to discuss the future steps", according to the declaration made on Thursday, in Brussels by Gerd Leers, the Dutch Minister of Immigration.

In regard to the possibility of the Schengen entry file of Romania and Bulgaria being discussed during the European Council between 17 and 18 October, Gerd Leers specified that "it would be useless to discuss this subject again if there is no legal information about a progress concerning the rule of law".

Belgium, one of the countries which support Romania’s entry in the Schengen area, believes that Bucharest meets all the criteria needed for entry.

"We consider that Romania has met all the conditions and criteria required to enter the Schengen area and, traditionally, we will support the European Commission and respect their decision in order to commence this process", Belgian Prime Minister Yves Le Terme declared.

Translated by: Mădălina Borcău
MA Student, MTTLC, Bucharest University