Bulgaria and Romania want to join Schengen

Romania and Bulgaria will not join the Schengen area in 2014, European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso has said. According to him, against the accession of these countries to the Schengen agreement “there is too much resistance in the EU”, in particular from Germany, France and the Netherlands.

Romania and Bulgaria were last denied entry into Schengen this spring. The authorities of other countries - parties to the agreement believe that Romania is not effectively fighting corruption and organized crime, and can not ensure the security of its borders. Similar claims have been made to the Bulgarian authorities.

According to ITAR-TASS, a number of Romanian experts believe that the main reason for the refusal is the removal in early 2014 of the official restriction on the arrival of labor migrants from newcomers to the EU markets. Against this background, a propaganda campaign was launched in the European media, describing the negative consequences of this step in the context of a falling economy and rising unemployment in the eurozone countries.

Currently, the Schengen area includes 26 countries, of which 22 are members of the European Union and four non-EU countries. Bulgaria and Romania have been EU members since 2007. To enter the Schengen area, the candidate country must meet a number of requirements related to the fight against corruption and organized crime.