EP Might Renew Support For Romania's Schengen Area Accession

The MEPs on Wednesday will debate a draft resolution on the two states' accession, which calls on the member states "not to give priority to national populism." The Parliament will vote on the resolution Thursday.

The draft says that "both countries have fundamentally redesigned and reorganised their integrated border management systems by investing substantially in their law enforcement authorities, including the provision of training and the latest technology, and have visibly reinforced their institutional and legal frameworks, a fact which is acknowledged in all the Schengen evaluation reports."

It also notes "the constant support and solidarity shown by Bulgaria and Romania as reliable partners in south-eastern Europe, along with their continual contribution to border security in this part of the EU."

The Parliament "urges all Member States to take the decision on enlarging the Schengen area to include Bulgaria and Romania solely on the basis of the Schengen acquis and procedures; believes that additional criteria cannot be imposed on Member States which are already in the process of joining the Schengen area."

The MEPs "call on the European Council to proceed in accordance with the EU Treaty and to take the necessary measures to enable Romania and Bulgaria to accede to the Schengen area" and on all member states "to honour their commitments under the EU legal framework as regards the Schengen accession criteria, and not to give priority to national populism."

The resolution's preamble says that Romania and Bulgaria "have fulfilled all the criteria for successful conclusion of the Schengen evaluation process" and reminds that both states' preparedness to join the Schengen Area "was certified by Parliament in its resolution of 8 June 2011 and by the Council in its conclusions of 9 June 2011."

The text also points out that "during the European Council of 24 June 2011, the heads of state and government agreed that the decision concerning the accession of Bulgaria and Romania should be taken no later than September 2011," but notes the decision was postponed "following the Council's failure to vote during its meeting of 22 September 2011."

The draft resolution is signed by the following MEPs:
- Marian-Jean Marinescu, Andrey Kovatchev, Carlos Coelho, Manfred Weber, Simon Busuttil, Monica Luisa Macovei, Mariya Nedelcheva, Elena Oana Antonescu, Georgios Papanikolaou, Véronique Mathieu on behalf of the PPE Group;
- Claude Moraes, Ioan Enciu, Iliana Malinova Iotova, Liisa Jaakonsaari on behalf of the S&D Group;
- Renate Weber, Sophia in 't Veld, Alexander Alvaro, Cecilia Wikström, Sarah Ludford, Filiz Hakaeva Hyusmenova, Stanimir Ilchev, Louis Michel, Metin Kazak, Sonia Alfano, Gianni Vattimo, Nathalie Griesbeck on behalf of the ALDE Group;
- Tatjana Ždanoka, Judith Sargentini on behalf of the Verts/ALE Group;
- Cornelia Ernst on behalf of the GUE/NGL Group.

MP Timothy Kirkhope, of the European Conservatives and Reformists group, submitted two amendments to the draft resolution. The first says the resolution should note that "technical criteria alone are insufficient to guarantee the proper functioning of the Schengen Area and issues such as levels of organised crime and corruption are equally important."

The other amendment says the Parliament should ask the Commission to propose introducing the above issues into the Schengen acquis as additional criteria.

A second draft resolution on the accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen Area is sponsored by only two MEPs - Mara Bizzotto and Nikolaos Salavrakos, of the Europe of Freedom and Democracy group. The text stresses that "the Council and the Commission must respect the unanimity principle to let Bulgaria and Romania join the Schengen zone" and notes that "Bulgarian and Romanian accession to the Schengen zone is absolutely not appropriate."

A decision on the two states' accession was postponed in the JHA Council on September 21. Poland, which chaired the Council, strongly supported a favorable decision. However, due to the inflexible position of the Netherlands and Finland, Poland chose not to put the issue to the vote, so as to avoid a negative decision that would have entailed repeating a part of the accession legal procedure.

The issue of Schengen Area accession will be brought up by Romanian President Traian Basescu in the European Council on October 23, Foreign Minister Teodor Baconschi said in an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung.

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