Romania & Bulgaria to sign a declaration regarding full Schengen membership

Sofia: Romania and Bulgaria will sign a declaration regarding full Schengen accession on November 22.

However, Bulgaria’s Caretaker Prime Minister, Dimitar Glavchev, said that this is not a final decision for full Schengen accession.

Glavchev said that irregular border crossing attempts on the Bulgarian-Turkish border have declined by 70 per cent.

Bulgaria’s Caretaker Prime Minister, Dimitar Glavchev, has said that on Friday, November 22, the interior ministers of Bulgaria, Romania and Austria will sign a declaration regarding the full membership of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen Zone.

However, Glavchev said that the declaration is not the final decision for Bulgaria’s Schengen accession in terms of land borders but a recognition of the work that his country has done in Schengen.News reports.

The Caretaker Prime Minister also emphasised that irregular border crossing attempts on the Bulgarian-Turkish border have declined by 70 per cent.

This is another step in recognising the contribution Bulgaria has made to guarding the EU’s external borders.

On November 22, the interior ministers from Romania, Bulgaria, Austria, and Hungary, as the holder of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, will hold a working meeting, during which further measures following the partial accession of Romania and Bulgaria will also be discussed.

Referring to the upcoming meeting, Romania’s Interior Minister, Cătălin Predoiu, said that his country is optimistic regarding full Schengen accession progress after the meeting on November 22, 2024.

Predoiu said that pieces are quite well placed for Schengen membership in terms of land borders; however, he said that nothing has been predetermined and nothing has been decided yet.

The entry of Romania through land borders to the Schengen Zone was discussed yesterday, November 20, through a phone call between the Minister of Internal Affairs of Romania, Cătălin Predoiu and the Interior Minister of Hungary, as holder of the rotating EU Council Presidency, Sandor Pinter.

According to a report from Bulgarian News Agency, Minister Predoiu said that he completed a series of three meetings with the Austrian Minister, Gerhard Karner, the Bulgarian Minister Atanas Ilkov, and the Hungarian Minister Sandor Pinter, during which Predoiu sought to align Romania’s position to ensure that Budapest will make another step forward in Romania’s land border Schengen accession.

Recently, the President of Bulgaria, Rumen Radev, said that there will be no difference between Romania and Bulgaria on their journey towards full Schengen accession. Radev said that a positive decision on the matter is expected on December 12.

On the other hand, Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said that Romania and Bulgaria will join the Schengen Area through land borders in January 2025.

The European Commissioner for Home Affairs, Ylva Johannson, recently said she is optimistic the full integration of Romania and Bulgaria into the EU’s borderless area will be finalised by the end of this year.

She said that she cannot see any obstacles that would impede the finalisation of this process by the end of 2024.

Romania and Bulgaria are ready, the Schengen area is ready, so I can’t see any obstacles. It’s time to lift internal border controls now.

Romania and Bulgaria become members of the Schengen Area by air and sea on March 31, 2024. However, border controls continue to remain effective.