The EU Commission has urged the Council of Ministers to enable Romania and Bulgaria to become full members of the Schengen Area in 2023, following Croatia’s accession this year.
Several EU countries support the accession of the two countries, in particular Germany and Hungary – the latter of which has a large population outside its borders. However, Austria has maintained its veto on the extension of the Schengen Area until the illegal flow of people is brought under control. Asylum applications in Austria nearly tripled in 2022 to about 110,000 and, around the same time, Austria’s Minister of the Interior, Gerhard Karner pointed out that seven per cent of those smuggling migrants to Austria were Romanians.
„While further efforts are needed to further strengthen the management of the external borders, make returns more efficient and increase police cooperation, Schengen is generally functional and robust,” reads the European Commission’s Report on the Schengen Area.
Austria last vetoed Romania’s entry to Schengen in December last year. The Member States are expected to gather at a second Schengen Council on June 8 to discuss aligning visa policies of third-country partners with the EU, abolishing risky investor citizenship and residence schemes and maximising the use of SIS in order to make the return system more effective.
“Operationally the increased police cooperation will allow better info exchange, to monitor borders, visas and risk of organised crime. Representation has been intensified with upgraded annual Schengen evaluations, Schengen Coordinator outreach and more high-level Council discussions. Our Membership has grown with Croatia joining on January 1, the latest addition to our growing list,” Commissioner Johansson said.
CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE NEWS
European Commission Urges Member States to Let Romania and Bulgaria into Schengen
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