Bulgaria and Romania join Schengen Member States
After more than a decade of waiting, Bulgaria and Romania are set to partially join Europe’s expansive Schengen area of free movement on Sunday, allowing for travel by air and sea without border checks.
However, land border controls will remain in place until for some time.
The decision to allow Bulgaria and Romania partial membership in the Schengen zone is seen as a significant step forward, symbolizing a sense of dignity and belonging to the European Union for both countries.
Stefan Popescu, a foreign policy analyst, emphasized the importance of this milestone, highlighting the previous sense of being treated differently by Romanian citizens.
The inclusion of Bulgaria and Romania will bring the total number of Schengen members to 29, encompassing 25 EU member states and four non-EU countries.
While the Schengen rules will apply to select sea ports and airports in Romania, including Otopeni airport near Bucharest, additional staff will be deployed to enforce security measures and combat illegal immigration and human trafficking.
Both Bulgaria and Romania aspire to fully integrate into the Schengen area by the end of the year. However, concerns remain among truck drivers who face long wait times at borders with neighboring countries, leading to significant financial losses for hauliers.
Despite these challenges, authorities in Bucharest and Sofia remain committed to the irreversible process of Schengen integration, with plans to extend membership to land borders by 2024.
Why Bulgaria and Romania will not have free access through land borders?
Austria had objected to expanding the zone, fearing more illegal immigration, but later agreed the two Balkan states could enter the zone in stages. Talks will continue next year on opening land borders.
There are currently 27 countries in the Schengen area, which allows 400 million people to move freely between them. Romania and Bulgaria joined the EU in 2007 and have been trying to enter Schengen for more than 10 years. Their full entry to the zone would leave Ireland and Cyprus as the only EU countries outside it.
Austrian officials have said only that negotiations are continuing. Vienna vetoed Schengen’s expansion in 2022 but earlier this month relaxed its position, putting forward the idea of “Air Schengen” as a precursor to the opening of land borders.It said it was prepared to allow a relaxation in the rules for air travel for the two countries if Brussels took steps to strengthen the EU’s external borders.
Austria’s ruling People’s Party has taken a tough line on immigration under pressure from the far-right Freedom Party, which is currently ahead in the polls.
