President Klaus Iohannis announced in Brussels on Wednesday that the Romanian state would not boycott Austria, calling for a resolution of the dispute with Austria over Schengen through diplomacy. Iohannis also said Romania would not challenge the Austrian veto in EU courts.
The head of state said he would raise the Schengen issue at the December 15 European Council, but warned it was hard to believe he could get Austria’s attitude changed.
- We have a rich agenda, including on energy. Energy ministers disagreed last night, but we will continue the talks
- There are topics that I will raise: the Schengen topic. Last week, interior ministers in the JAI Council failed to close Romania’s entry into Schengen. The question is how to continue. We Romanians want to be part of Schengen, that’s my main goal as president
- We have two problems. Austria’s attitude, which is reserved, the chancellor recently said that this vote means a postponement, not a definitive no. It’s a nuance of the location. But we also have the second problem: the Dutch vote was mixed, YES for Romania, half NO for Bulgaria. It wasn’t a definitive no, it’s the desire for a postponement until certain problems in Bulgaria are resolved
- This moment can be treated in one key. With diplomacy. Everything else is excluded.
- I have heard countless opinions, advice. There will be no boycott of Austria by the Romanian state and public authorities
- The political class has had a phenomenal political success, the CVM has been revoked and thus the most important political obstacle to Schengen entry has been removed
- The European Commission supported us competently and in good faith. The Czech presidency has supported us a lot, it has shown itself to be extremely mobilised
- We will have the Swedish presidency of the EU Council, we have already discussed it with the Swedish prime minister
- I will have many discussions to see how we can take the next steps, because it has to be a success. No one wants us to end up on a JAI Council with a failing vote
- I will have meetings with the President of the European Commission, with the Czech Prime Minister, with the Swedish Prime Minister and we will also start the discussion with the Austrians, we must not avoid such discussions
- We have seen that there are many public advisers who create expectations related to the European Council. I will raise this issue in the Council plenary, but practical solutions will be found in the future JAI Council
- I don’t think anyone imagined that Austria and Holland would change positions in one week, it’s not possible
- It takes a lot of work. My team and the ministers have done their job. I find the culpability going on in some quarters strange. The culprits are not in Bucharest, you know where they are
Q: Do you want a mention in the conclusions of the European Council?
A: I am afraid that such a thing will not be possible, the conclusions are only adopted unanimously. The positions are the same as the JAI Council. We have to rebuild the whole approach, so it’s going to take some time. So please don’t have any expectations, but a membership is possible in 2023.
Q: Could more be done?
A: No, more could not have been done, because Austria’s change of attitude took place in a few days and has nothing to do with us, but with internal reasons.
Q: Is there a potential exit strategy from Bulgaria?
A: Purely in theory, the question of the Dutch vote has two solutions. Either Holland changes its option or there will be a separate vote. Personally I think that entering Schengen together is better, it is preferable. Imagine if Bulgaria, which is not a major European power, were left alone in the face of the wave of migration. We are looking for the option to enter together with Bulgaria. Procedures in Brussels are very complex and allow many approaches. What the interior minister prepared was not decoupling, but the lag. That is, the terms should be staggered.
Q: Is this plywood plan still a plan?
A: We will find out after discussions with the people involved. No voting has a big impact across the EU. We see that diplomatic solutions are beginning to be sought everywhere in the world, but it will take time
Q: Do you expect Austria to create new conditions for Romania?
A: There were no new conditions imposed by Austria on Romania, but by the European Commission. But Austria’s argument was not built against Romania or Bulgaria. They used this stage to show that they have too many migrants.
Q: Is the possibility of an appeal to the CJEU excluded?
A: In the heat and excitement, all kinds of analysts come up with all kinds of solutions. Romania will not appeal the matter to the CJEU.
Q: What will the timetable be?
A: I don’t want to make predictions on a calendar. But these requests to the Commission are not new, they appeared before the JAI Council, we knew them, the Commission came on December 6 with a new plan for the Balkan route. There is still work to be done on this plan, but the Commission is already working on these solutions. It may not be sensational, but Romania is not part of a problem, but part of a solution. We have every interest in solving problems. But, beyond the explanations, it must be clear to everyone: Schengen is one thing, migration is another.
Q: To what extent does it contribute to the growth of Euroscepticism?
A: It’s possible there will be negative reactions, but my hope is that if we find a solution, people will see that it was a syncope, not a rejection by Romania. We are not alone, we are wanted in the EU, in Schengen, but we must overcome this syncope. It makes no sense to fall into a collective syncope.
