EU Commissioner: Bulgaria, Romania Enrty to Schengen is Necessary for Security

The accession of Bulgaria and Romania to Schengen is not only politically fair but also necessary for the security. This was announced at a press conference by Commissioner for Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship, Dimitris Avramopoulos, on 27^th of September.

"Schengen is one of the major achievements of European integration and we are fully committed to safeguard, preserve and strengthen it,” he said. “The absence of internal border control constitutes the very essence of Schengen. But in a common area without border controls, security concerns are common too. This is why we must do everything to preserve the careful balance between free movement and mobility on the one hand, and security on the other. And we can only achieve this through a coordinated and united Schengen framework, which should include Romania and Bulgaria too,” Avramopoulos noted.

The Commission today again called on the EU Council to take a decision on the Schengen accession of Bulgaria and Romania.

“Finally, for Member States to confront threats in a united way, standing together in a stronger Schengen area, it is now high time that Bulgaria and Romania become full Schengen members. The Council should take the decision to approve their Schengen accession and lift controls at the internal borders between these two Member States and their EU neighbours. Bulgaria and Romania have demonstrated their capacity to defend the EU's external borders, and should therefore become members of our internal border-free zone,“ the press release says.

source: BTA