The Austrian Minister of the Interior, Gerhard Karner, stated that it would be wrong to set a concrete date for Romania’s accession with all borders to the Schengen Area, noting that he will continue the collaboration to improve the Schengen system. “We all know that there is a great pressure of illegal migration in Europe. Therefore, we have common interests here, we have launched joint efforts precisely to strengthen this system”, he pointed out.
Gerhard Karner was asked, on Tuesday, in a press conference held in Vienna, what else Romania needs to enter the Schengen Area and land borders.
“I want to speak clearly that I really did not reproach Bulgaria and Romania directly. A year and a half ago I said that a system that does not work cannot be expanded. That’s why I made that decision then. Bulgaria and Romania are very important partners for Austria when it comes to putting pressure on the European Commission to improve the Schengen system. Our efforts have already borne fruit. You probably know that the director of Frontex has already announced increased operations, even the tripling of Frontex officers in these countries. We also have confirmation from the European Commission that more funds will be invested in Romania and Bulgaria for these purposes, and I believe that this is a very important step”, said the Austrian Minister of the Interior.
“We will collaborate to improve the Schengen system”
He announced that he will continue to improve the Schengen system.
“We will continue to collaborate to improve the Schengen system. We all know that there is a great pressure of illegal migration in Europe. Therefore, we have common interests here, we have launched joint efforts precisely to strengthen this system. Currently there are other countries, members of the Schengen Area, with land border controls, because we, the ministers of the interior, are responsible for the safety of our cities. There are controls in Germany, France and Austria. We must do everything possible to fix the security situation in the European Union, to continue to guarantee freedom of movement for our citizens, but I think that at the moment it would be wrong to set a concrete date in this regard”, Gerhard Karner said. .
