German MEP Guido Reil of the Identity and Democracy (ID) group, who argued that Romania should not be admitted to Schengen, calling it the “Wild West of Europe”, returns and apologizes to Romanians: “I want to tell you From the bottom of my heart I I want to apologize to the Romanian people.”

In October, German MEP Guido Reil sharply criticized Romania and Bulgaria in a plenary session of the European Parliament, arguing that both countries should not be admitted to Schengen and that their entry into the EU was a mistake.

• “I have been to Romania many times in the last year, and I want to be friendly when I say that Romania is the Wild West of Europe.
• I saw much better infrastructure in Ukraine than in Romania. We don’t need Romania and Bulgaria either in the European Union or in Schengen,” said Ryle, a member of the nationalist-authoritarian Alternative for Germany (AfD) party.

Now the German MEP, who was on a visit to Hunedoara county, is returning to those statements and asking for an apology from Romanians in a video message published on the Facebook page of MP Natalia Intotero, who summoned him to Romania.

• “In October, I gave a speech in the European Parliament regarding the accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen zone. This speech touched many Romanians.
• Then I based my opinion on the basis of my personal experience of communication with Romanians from my hometown in Germany, the Ruhr region. Romanians, who mainly belong to the Roma population.
• As I said, I hurt many Romanians with my statement, and I am grateful that I was invited to Romania by the Romanian parliamentarian, Natalia Intotero, who gave me the opportunity to create my own image.
• I must say that I met incredibly kind and friendly people. Poor people are poorer than in Germany.
• But people who are still rich because they are proud. A pride that many Germans have lost. People who are proud of their history. Proud of their culture, proud of their country.
• A country that is united with its church. A country that builds new churches. People who love their family are a classic family. These are all things that I also love and respect very much. That’s why I want to tell you from the bottom of my heart that I want to apologize to the Romanian people, the proud Romanian people,” Guido Reil said.