Ooni Koda
  1. Home
  2. /
  3. Newsfeed
  4. /
  5. European Commissioner Ylva Johansson: Romania and Bulgaria are...

European Commissioner Ylva Johansson: Romania and Bulgaria are not admitted to Schengen yet

January 5, 2023

European Commissioner for Home Affairs Ylva Johansson announced in Brussels on Thursday that Romania and Bulgaria have not yet been admitted to the Schengen Area.The Commissioner for Home Affairs congratulated Croatia and the Croatian citizens on their accession and said that Bulgaria and Romania also deserve to join the Schengen area, but have failed to obtain the unanimous support needed to join the area of free movement of people and goods.I want to address the Romanian and Bulgarian citizens as well. You deserve to be fully part of Schengen. You deserve to have access to the free movement area. You had strong support from almost all member states, from the Czech Presidency, from the Commission, Johansson said at a joint press briefing with Czech Interior Minister Vit Rakusan.I would be lying to you if I did not say that I am also disappointed and I think I share this disappointment with the citizens of Romania and Bulgaria. It is the role of the Commission to be optimistic and to make the next steps. We will continue to do so and I am convinced that we will achieve the accession of Romania and Bulgaria during this mandate and that will be my priority, the European Commissioner for Home Affairs assured.Asked by Romanian journalists if the issue of Romania's and Bulgaria's accession to Schengen could eventually reach the agenda of the European Council next week, she said she would be surprised if this happened, but added that she supports any action for the accession of Romania and Bulgaria to Schengen.

Read in full - click here
Romanian Social Democrats elect new leadership, only one candidate running for party leader

Representatives of the ruling Social Democratic Party, PSD, gathered for a congress in Bucharest on Friday, November 7, to elect new leadership and to amend the party’s Statute. The only candidate for party leader is Sorin Grindeanu, who held the interim position after Marcel Ciolacu's resignation in May. In his speech at the congress, Sorin […]

Black Friday sales processed by PayU Romania top EUR 100 mln by early afternoon

The e-commerce sector recorded strong early results on Black Friday 2025, according to real-time data released on Friday, November 7, by PayU GPO Romania from its dedicated Media Center. By 14:10, the payment processor reported successful transactions totaling RON 514 million (roughly EUR 101 million). PayU said shoppers had made roughly 889,000 purchases, with around […]

Romanian smartphone retailer Contakt to launch IPO on Bucharest Exchange

Contakt Express Logistik, one of Romania’s leading retailers of mobile phone and tablet accessories, with a network of over 235 stores, is set to launch the initial public offering (IPO) between November 12 and December 3, 2025. The company offers a wide range of products, including cases, screen protectors, chargers, and gadgets, both in physical […]

Romania draws fewer foreign tourists than in the communist era, Travel Agencies Association warns

Romania attracts fewer international tourists today than it did during the communist era, making it the only country in Europe in this situation, the National Association of Travel Agencies (ANAT) warned, as reported by news agency Agerpres. According to the organization, Romania received more than 3.4...

InterCapital launches two new ETFs on the Bucharest Stock Exchange

InterCapital ETF, the first international ETF provider in Romania, will launch two new exchange-traded funds on the Bucharest Stock Exchange starting November 11, 2025. The new instruments are the InterCapital CROBEX10 TR UCITS ETF, which offers exposure to the Croatian blue-chip equity market by tracking the performance of the CROBEX10tr index, and the InterCapital EUR […]

Romania, Bulgaria and Republic of Moldova approve Maspex’s takeover of Purcari Wineries

The Competition Councils of Romania, Bulgaria, and the Republic of Moldova have granted the necessary authorizations and approvals for the completion of the transaction through which Maspex Romania takes over the majority shareholding of Purcari Wineries.  The Maspex Group, which has been present in Romania for nearly 30 years, became the majority shareholder of one […]