Less than 24 hours after the EU Council meeting to decide whether Romania will be admitted to Schengen, the leaders of the EPP, the most powerful party in the European Parliament, are having a series of high-level meetings with Austrian officials in Vienna, sending a message of support to our country .

Manfred Weber, President of the EPPPhoto: Jean-Francois Badias/AP/Profimedia

The President of the European People’s Party, Manfred Weber, met with Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehhammer, during which he unequivocally stated that there is no reason for Vienna to oppose Romania’s accession to Schengen.

“This is the moment when we have to be honest: we understand Austria’s problems with illegal migrants, but so far Austria has not said anything about it. Nothing will be solved regarding migrants if we leave Romania outside the Schengen area. (…) In Austria, the situation is very special, because the Socialist Party opposes the extension of Schengen. We have to understand that this is a small country with 100 thousand migrants. I see and understand their frustration, but you cannot solve one frustration by creating another frustration by keeping Romania and Bulgaria out of the Schengen area,” Weber said after meeting with the Austrian chancellor.

When asked if there are still chances for a positive vote for Romania, the EPP leader replied: “Nothing is decided in politics until everything is decided.”

He insisted that Romania and Bulgaria have made great efforts to meet the accession criteria and have been implementing Schengen rules for many years.

Weber commented that unity at the European level is necessary because Russia is “interested in dividing the EU.”

Muresan: “We do not agree with the fact that Romania is becoming a side victim of internal political problems in Austria”

Romanian MEPs from the European People’s Party (EPP) group will support all European solutions to the migration crisis that help Austria, but will firmly state that they will not agree to Romania becoming a collateral victim of Austria’s domestic political problems, they said on Wednesday, for Agerpres , MEP Siegfried Muresan, vice president of this political group.

Siegfried Muresan is one of the Romanian MEPs taking part in a high-level EPP meeting in Vienna from Wednesday to Friday, chaired by group leader Manfred Weber, with the participation of Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer, as well as his colleagues from Slovakia and Croatia. Andrey Plenkovich and Eduard Heger.

“What shall we tell them? We will repeat to them the fact that Romania fulfills all conditions for accession, that our accession is in the interests of the whole EU, and we will also listen to their claims and arguments that they may have and that may cause them certain fears.” , said the Romanian MEP.

He claims that Romania has nothing to do with the migration issue raised by Austria. “That is why we will support all European solutions to the migration crisis, all solutions that help Austria, but we will be very clear, very firm, saying that we do not agree to Romania becoming a side victim of Austria’s internal political problems. Colleagues from the EPP have been united with us in recent weeks, and I am convinced that the EPP will be united on the side of Romania, and together we will try to convince this last state to support our accession to the Schengen area,” he added.

Thursday’s final agenda for the SAA Council includes “full implementation of the Schengen acquis in Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania,” and Romanian Prime Minister Nicolae Cucăt announced on Wednesday that Romania’s accession will be put to a vote in the SAA Council.

  • Approving vote in the Parliament of the Netherlands for Romania’s accession to Schengen