Romania joins Schengen by air and sea, PM says full admission possible by end-2024
Romania and Bulgaria became members of the Schengen Area with their airports and sea ports on March 31, an event that was welcomed by EU and Romanian state officials. Prime minister Marcel Ciolacu expressed his confidence that the checks…
Radu Dumitrescu · Journalist
· Updated · 4 min read
Romania and Bulgaria became members of the Schengen Area with their airports and sea ports on March 31, an event that was welcomed by EU and Romanian state officials. Prime minister Marcel Ciolacu expressed his confidence that the checks at land borders will also be lifted by the end of 2024, a deadline that is also eyed by the European Commission.
From April 1, Romanians traveling to Schengen area states by plane no longer have to go through checks at air and sea borders. Specifically, they will not stop at the Border Police checkpoints for their travel documents to be verified and will go directly to the boarding gates.
The next step, according to Romanian officials, is the lifting of land checks between Romania and Schengen countries.
Prime minister Marcel Ciolacu said that joining the Schengen area by air and sea was a “victory for Romania and all those who believed in this country project," News.ro reported. He also said that the government has a clear plan for full accession by the end of the year.
Other Romanian officials highlighted the same goal. The leader of the governing Liberal party (PNL), senate president Nicolae Ciucă, said that the next objective is clear: full accession to the Schengen Area, including with land borders, as soon as possible.
Liberal Romanian MEP Cristian Bușoi said that Romania was kept out until now due to the political and economic interests of some EU states. He also added that Romania will be a full Schengen member by the end of the year. "It will happen this year, everyone is mobilized in this direction,” he told B1.
Romania’s Foreign Ministry also noted its optimism regarding full membership. "We remain motivated to obtain, as soon as possible, a decision on the elimination of controls at the land borders as well. This step will complete our membership in the European 'borderless' space. We will continue intense political-diplomatic efforts, in close coordination with the Ministry of Internal Affairs, to achieve this important objective for Romanians,"
