Romania To Sit Next Test In Schengen Accession – Airport Reevaluation

The experts will measure the progress on the Timisoara "Traian Vuia" Airport and the Bucharest-Otopeni "Henri Coanda" Airport. This is the only re-evaluation requested so far in the accession process. The Romanian Interior Ministry says the two airports are ready and have been brought to the proper standard.

The experts will also visit two border crossing points at Moravita, Timisoara County (western Romania). This visit is not considered an "evaluation." The road crossing point has been modernized according to Schengen recommendations, while work on the railway crossing point is expected to finish by November 30, 2010.

The Interior Ministry says every Schengen evaluation report so far has concluded Romania is well along in implementing the Schengen acquis and mostly prepared to join the Area.

The evaluation missions began in March 2009 with an assessment of police cooperation. The team, comprising experts from Schengen members, a European Commission official and a representative of the EU Council General Secretariat, visited the main relevant bodies, including the International Police Cooperation Center, the Bihor County Police Inspectorate and the Bucharest Institute for Criminal Science.

The second evaluation targeted the protection of personal data, and took place between April 29 and May 1, 2009. In June 2009, the experts assessed cooperation regarding visas, while in September they checked the security of sea borders.

The experts were satisfied with Romania's progress and did not make any recommendations for re-evaluation.

A check of Romania's air borders, in November 2009, was followed by a request for the re-evaluation of the infrastructures of the Otopeni and Timisoara airports. Former Interior Minister Vasile Blaga said at the time it is "imperative" for the Transport Ministry to bring the two objectives to European standards.

A visit between March 27 and April 1, 2010, targeting Romania's land border crossing points at Vicsani, Siret, Nicolina, Sculeni, Albita, Moravita and Orsova, yielded a positive report. Blaga said Romania's main weakness is infrastructure, which requires financial efforts on behalf of the Government, Interior Ministry, Transport Ministry and National Customs Authority. He also said the country must be ready to deal with the increased pressure on its borders and border crime.

The final evaluation will relate to the Schengen Information System and the Supplementary Information Request at the National Entry (SIRENE), between November and December 2010.

On the other hand, European partners are concerned about Romania's management of the Schengen Area's future exterior borders. Worrying remarks by the members, who will take a political vote on the Area's enlargement, began in the summer of 2010, when French President Nicolas Sarkozy implemented a policy for the repatriation of Romanian and Bulgarian Roma. Romanian diplomats have come to realize that, aside from meeting technical requirements, the Schengen candidate must convince the Area's members that it deserves to be a part of the "space of liberty, security and justice."

Schengen accession may not, however, be tied to the issue of Roma. Still, French state secretary for European affairs Pierre Lellouche said the vote will be political and could possibly involve the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism on the issue of justice. The European Commission's most recent report, published in July, said Romania needs to take urgent steps to fight corruption and implement complete transparency in public purchases.

Romania and Bulgaria are set to join the Schengen Area in March 2011, but France said it would rather wait until the next Commission report, due in the summer of 2011, to see whether the Area's integrity and security can be ensured by the prospective members.

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