​President Klaus Iohannis says he was “disappointed” and “angry” after the JAI Council vote in which Austria blocked Romania from joining Schengen.

The head of state reviewed the episodes of Holland, Sweden and Austria, recalling that on November 16 in Bucharest, the Minister of the Interior from Vienna, together with his colleagues from the EU, signed a statement that Romania and Bulgaria were welcome in Schengen, but two days later he said the opposite.

“When the voting was taking place, an interesting thing happened. For two weeks – that’s how long the entire NO stage lasted – Austria declared that the Schengen area cannot be expanded because there are too many migrants. But for Croatia he knew how to vote YES, for Romania and Bulgaria he knew how to vote NO. This way of conducting politics in the European Union cannot be considered positive,” Yohannis commented.

“This vote does not make me retreat. I will keep in touch with this phenomenon. (…) I will go further and I am convinced that we will find a solution. We will continue negotiations with the Austrian side and the European Commission. For me, this type of upset or disappointment has never stopped me from doing what is good for the community that elected me, and this time it is the Romanian nation, and I will be fully involved. (…) Romania’s integration into the Schengen zone remains a national strategic goal and my personal goal,” the president added.

However, Iohannis did not say specifically what the next steps would be, promising that he would present “probably two or three actions” on Wednesday.

“What needs to be done? It is necessary to use all possible ways to find a diplomatic solution to this issue. What specific steps we will discuss along the way, today I will not give you anything concrete, but on Wednesday I will probably present two or three actions that I will initiate to move along this Schengen file,” said the head of state. .

“It is hard to believe that the Austrian side will change its mind in a few days”

As for a new vote in the JAI Council on Romania’s accession, President Iohannis has almost ruled out that it will happen immediately.

“Now on Wednesday and Thursday, maybe also on Friday, we will have a meeting of the European Council, and I will definitely raise this issue in the European Council. There will be a debate, there will probably be different opinions, but a new vote will only take place when the JAI Board meets again, and from the data we have at the moment, it is hard to believe that there will be a change of heart on the Austrian side in a few days. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t continue the conversation.”

Statements of the President:

• The JAI Council vote is very problematic for all of us in Romania and I have to say that I was disappointed and angry after receiving the results of this vote. This frustration and anger comes from the fact that for 11 years we have sought, negotiated and hoped to enter the Schengen area with full rights – we Romanians, after this year that is coming to an end, we have achieved several notable successes.
• Let’s not forget that one of the main obstacles to the integration into the Schengen area was the existence of this MCV, the cooperation and verification mechanism. And together with the Government, together with the Coalition, we managed to reach the point that the European Commission considered that this mechanism was completed and it was canceled. Thanks to intensive and very close cooperation with the Netherlands, we managed to convince the Dutch partners to change their opinion on the Schengen issue regarding Romania and to propose to the Dutch Parliament the government to vote positively for Romania, an issue approved by the Dutch Parliament. Also this year, the political equation in Sweden changed, and at first the Swedish parliament was not at all enthusiastic about the possible accession of Romania to the Schengen area. We also cooperated, negotiated, discussed and removed Sweden’s reserves.
• On November 16, here in Bucharest, in the Palace of the Parliament, there was a meeting of the ministers of the interior of the European Union in the so-called Salzburg format, Salzburg is a city in Austria, and at the end of this meeting, the ministers issued a statement that was very clear: Romania and Bulgaria are welcome to Schengen zone – this issue was signed and supported, including by the Austrian Minister of Internal Affairs, on November 16. Only two days later, the same Minister of the Interior of Austria told the Austrian press that Austria could not agree to the expansion of the Schengen area, which is difficult to understand.
• Various data were distributed that did not match either our data or Frontex data, and an interesting thing happened during the vote: Austria claimed for two weeks – that’s how long the entire NO stage lasted – that the Schengen area could not be expanded because it was too many migrants. But for Croatia he knew how to vote YES, for Romania and Bulgaria he knew how to vote NO. This way of conducting politics in the European Union cannot be considered positive, it is quite clear that migration is a problem for the European Union, but it is equally clear that Romania does not allow illegal migration and is not the cause of illegal migration.
• So, in essence, Romania received an undeserved NO in a case that we did not cause, on the contrary, Romania is very active in fighting illegal migration. Therefore, even the Romanians did not understand where such a refusal came from, and people are indignant, many are simply indignant, and I can understand them.
• But in politics it doesn’t matter whether you are angry, disappointed or happy. In politics, we are elected to solve the problems of the community, the problems of the nation, and that is what I will do. This vote, even if it saddened and disappointed me, does not make me back down. And personally, I will be very connected to this phenomenon and determined to move forward until Romania becomes a member of the Schengen area. It won’t be easy.
• Now, on Wednesday and Thursday, maybe also on Friday, we will have a meeting of the European Council, and I will definitely raise this issue in the European Council. There will be a debate, there will probably be different opinions, but a new vote will only take place when the JAI Board meets again, and from the data we have at the moment, it is hard to believe that there will be a change of heart on the Austrian side in a few days. But that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t continue the discussion.
• Problems of the Union, diplomatic problems, economic problems, problems of cooperation are solved by discussion and joint search for solutions.
• I will move forward and am convinced that we will find a solution for this problem as well. Since this year we have also found a solution for MCV to change the Dutch NO to the Dutch YES, to change the Swedish NO to the Swedish YES, we will continue the discussion with the Austrian side, with the European Commission, and I am very determined, I repeat, the same solution is on Government levels – let’s solve this problem.
• For me, this type of upset or disappointment has never stopped me from doing what is good for the community that elected me, and this time it is the Romanian nation, and I will be fully involved. If it is time to find fault, there are of course things that could be done differently, better, although I struggle to see how it can be done better when, just two weeks before the vote, one party is unprepared and inexplicably changes its attitude towards voting
• The next discussion with journalists, which I am very ready and open to, will take place in Brussels before the summit between the European Union and ASEAN, respectively before the Council, and I think it will take some time until we find a solution, but Romania Integration to the Schengen area remains objective national strategy and remains a goal for me personally.
• What should be done? It is necessary to use all possible ways to find a diplomatic solution to this issue. What specific steps we will discuss as we go along, I won’t give you anything concrete today, but on Wednesday I will probably present two or three actions that I will initiate to progress this Schengen file.