EC president, first VP come to meet Romanians for debates on EU future

Jean-Claude Juncker, the president of the European Commission, and Frans Timmermans, first vice president of the same body, will come to Bucharest to attend public debates on the future of the European Union. The general public can attend the debates, scheduled for April 20 and May 11 at the National Art Museum (MNAR), within the limit of the 400 available places. The European Commission presented, at the beginning of March, five scenarios for the way the European Union could evolve by 2025. The scenarios vary from rewinding the integration process and only keeping the single market to accelerating the integration process and having more decisions taken at the center. The EU leaders are expected decide by the end of this year on the direction to follow. “I have seen points of view, not only in Romania, but also in other member states, that this is only an image exercise, that things are already decided. You should be convinced that this is not the case. I will give you arguments with two dates and one place. The first date is April 20, in Bucharest, at the National Art Museum – a public debate with first vice president of the European Commission Timmermans. Everyone is invited, within the available seating. The second date is May 11, also at the National Art Museum, also in the hall of 400 places – a public debate with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker,” said Angela Cristea, the head of the European Commission Representation in Romania, quoted by News.ro. The Bucharest meetings are part of the Citizens' Dialogues series of events, scheduled to take place across the EU. The meetings are designed in the style of town-hall debates, and are aimed at “presenting and communicating the common agenda, listening to ideas and engaging with stakeholders.” A list of upcoming ones is available here. Eurobarometer: Over half of the Romanians still trust the EU compared to only a third of the Europeans editor@romania-insider.com (Photo:EC - Audiovisual Service/ Etienne Ansotte)