The chances of Bulgaria being accepted into Schengen are becoming increasingly illusory, after Austria too has declared its opposition to expanding the area for free travel.
The Austrian Interior Ministry has announced that the country opposes the abolition of border controls of Bulgaria, Croatia and Romania, which are EU members, DPA reported, quoting the “Kurir” newspaper.
“Now that the external borders system is inactive, not a good time to vote on expansion“(of the Schengen area – note ed)”, Austrian Interior Minister Gerhard Karner, who belongs to the conservative Austrian People’s Party, told the Kurir newspaper.
Under the leadership of the Czech presidency on 8 December the Justice and Home Affairs Council is voted on the accession of the three countries to the Schengen area. There is an attitude that EU interior ministers will vote on Croatia’s Schengen membership separately from that of Bulgaria and Romania.
So far, no country has officially announced reservations against Croatia’s accession. This is not the case in Bulgaria and Romania. The Netherlands does not “let go” of the two Balkan countries due to corruption. There are also reservations in Sweden and decisions are taken by full consensus.
Austria is currently facing an increase in the number of arriving refugees who have passed through other EU countries under the so-called Balkan route to enter the country. According to data from the Interior Ministry, more than 90,000 people have reached the Austrian border since the beginning of the year. Of these, 75,000 were not previously registered in any other EU country, BTA notes.
In the Schengen area, which unites 26 countries, there are largely no border controls, allowing people to travel, work and live in another country without visas or permits.
Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia, Ireland and Cyprus are the only EU countries that are not part of the Schengen area, while non-EU countries Iceland, Norway, Switzerland and Liechtenstein are part of it.
The EU is divided
“The enlargement of the Schengen area with three new countries divides Europeans”, he comments on “Mond”.
The French newspaper noted in today’s issue that migration issues are making a comeback and countries like Austria and the Czech Republic are renewing border controls, while some countries continue to deny Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia entry to the area European free movement.
“Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia are ready to join the Schengen area… They have waited too long. They are ready and the European Union is ready to welcome them”. quoted EU Home Affairs Commissioner Ylva Johansson, who on Wednesday reiterated the European Commission’s call to immediately grant the three countries the right to join the free movement area – 26 countries with more than 420 million inhabitants, where, in principle , there is no longer organized border control .
The Commission announced its request three weeks before the next meeting of EU interior ministers, which will decide whether the Schengen area should be expanded as early as January. Like the European Parliament, which has repeatedly adopted resolutions in support of this enlargement, the Commission is trying to “give shape to one of the Community’s great successes”, as German Chancellor Olaf Scholz recalled at the end of August.
However, the 26 Schengen member countries still have to be convinced, as the decision is taken unanimously.
The topic is politically sensitive, as the question of migration takes hold in public debates, and the lack of borders also facilitates the movement of migrants. After two years of pandemic, when the number of asylum seekers has decreased, migration flows to the continent have increased this year, including on the route through the Eastern Balkans. Several countries, led by Austria and Hungary, have already resumed internal controls – against the Schengen letter – to stop them. Slovenian diplomacy warned on Monday that the country could also follow suit if Croatia joins the Schengen area.
“The problem with the route through the Eastern Balkans has been my priority in recent weeks,” said Ylva Johansson. “Together with our partners (from the region, known as “Mond”), we have launched an operation against sewers, also strengthened the means available to “Frontex” (the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, known as “Mond” ) and initiated visa policy harmonization between Europe and Serbia”, which, due to the visa-free regime, has been the gateway through which people from India and Bangladesh enter Europe for many months, he added.
Netherlands – the biggest obstacle
But the biggest obstacle to expansion, according to the newspaper, is not the countries of central Europe, but the Netherlands. In 2011, the country – one of the founding members of the EU, supported by Germany and France, blocked the entry of Romanians and Bulgarians into the Schengen area; 11 years later, the Dutch still haven’t changed their minds, writes “Mond”.
On October 19, the Dutch parliament called for “a more thorough investigation into the border control by Romania and Bulgaria. On this basis, the Netherlands will rigorously and fairly investigate the functioning of the rule of law and the reduction of corruption and organized crime in both countries.” Ylva Johansson, however, assures that the two countries “satisfy all the criteria and have adhered to all the results of Schengen, in particular in issuing visas and in cooperation with the police forces”.
“It seems normal that the Commission, which strongly wants to enlarge the Schengen area, publishes reports according to which everything is fine”, the newspaper said, quoting an unnamed European diplomat. But even this is still not enough, adds “Mond”.
“The most important thing is that all countries support Bulgaria”, assured, according to the publication, Bulgarian President Rumen Radev, who attended the meeting of the European Council in Brussels on October 21. He gave the example of Germany and France. “The Netherlands is already alone,” added Rumen Radev, quoted by news site Yuraktiv.
