MEPs Vlad Gheorghe, Dacian Ciolos (Romania) and Georgios Kyrtsos (Greece) and Bulgarian MP Daniel Lorer have sent a joint letter to Greek Minister of Migration and Asylum Dimitris Kairidis recommending him to propose, during the informal meeting of justice and home affairs ministers taking place on Thursday and Friday in Brussels, lifting the Schengen land border control between Romania, Bulgaria and Greece, Agerpres correspondent reports.The signatories bring to the attention of Minister Dimitris Kairidis a number of arguments why they see this appeal to be timely and why they call for controls to be lifted as soon as possible."Firstly, since 2011, the European Commission has systematically reiterated that Bulgaria and Romania are ready for full Schengen membership. Secondly, the European Parliament has issued numerous resolutions and reports calling for full Schengen membership, which have been supported by an absolute majority of the House," say the signatories of the letter.Another argument they put forward is that representatives of the Greek tourism and HORECA sectors are asking for the lifting of land border controls to facilitate the arrival of Romanian and Bulgarian tourists in Greece. This would become a very important factor of economic development, especially in the northern parts of Greece, provided that the land border becomes fully open before the summer season.Fourthly, land border controls between the three countries that are officially in the Schengen area are currently still causing huge losses to transport companies and tourists in terms of travel costs, lost financial gains and time. This is a factor that cannot be underestimated in the context of the economic crisis and unprecedented inflation.''Fifthly, lifting the border would immediately improve the environmental parameters of the areas concerned, thus contributing to the EU objective of reducing CO2 emissions, air pollution and related diseases,'' the letter shows.They also believe that the swift and decisive implementation of the proposal will enhance mutual trust among the three member states and increase the efficiency of their cooperation within the EU. ''This proposal responds to the needs of the citizens and it is our responsibility to overcome the difficulties and offer the citizens of our countries maximum benefits based on good neighbourly relations,'' they add.The main topics of the informal meeting of EU interior ministers are migration, the fight against drug trafficking, disinformation and the situation of Ukrainian citizens who arrived in the European Union because of the war launched by Russia against Ukraine on 24 February 2022.
Romania’s government has assumed responsibility in Parliament for legislation reforming magistrates’ pensions, prime minister Ilie Bolojan announced on December 2. He said the draft law had received the opinion of the High Court of Cassation and Justice, noting that the court’s assessment was negative. It is the government’s second attempt to have the bill promulgated, […]
Romania Education Alliance (REA), the first private school network in the country, announced it has exceeded the milestone of 1,000 students enrolled across its member schools just one year after launch. "The fact that we surpassed 1,000 students in our very first year of activity shows that the REA model addresses a real need in […]
Genesis College, one of the largest private educational institutions in Romania, announced the regulatory approval of the transaction through which the investment firm Mozaik Investments becomes its majority shareholder. The transaction, signed at the end of July, received all necessary approvals from the Competition Council on November 25, and, formally, the entire investment procedure is […]
The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) is lending up to EUR 29.9 million to the Romanian city of Brasov to finance energy efficiency upgrades in public buildings, initiating the city’s participation in the Bank’s flagship EBRD Green Cities programme. The Bank’s investment will fund the renovation of up to 20 public buildings, including […]
This festive season, JW Marriott Bucharest Grand Hotel invites guests to embrace the extraordinary and transform each moment into a lasting memory. On New Year’s Eve, the hotel unveils The Grand Countdown — a luminous celebration of new beginnings, thoughtfully crafted across four distinctive venues, each with its own character and atmosphere. The night begins […]
The European Commission has approved, under the EU Merger Regulation, the acquisition of sole control over ArcelorMittal Tubular Products Iași (AMTP Iași) by Metinvest B.V. of the Netherlands, part of the Ukrainian steel and mining group owned by Rinat Akhmetov, New Voice of Ukraine reported last week. Metinvest has...
