Laura Van Lerberghe (in Brussels), edited by Gauthier Delomez
7:44 p.m., December 08, 2022
A new country joins the Schengen area this Thursday: Croatia. European interior ministers meeting in Brussels gave the green light to this country of 3.9 million inhabitants, but rejected applications for membership from Romania and Bulgaria. Europe 1 takes stock of what this will change in practice.
On January 1, 2023, the borders between Croatia and the other 26 members of the Schengen area will end. This Thursday, the interior ministers meeting in Brussels unanimously gave the green light to the entry of the country, while nevertheless rejecting the applications for membership of Romania and Bulgaria. This historic decision means first of all, concretely, that there will be no more queues of vehicles at the border because there will be no more controls, nor passports for Croats.
Residents will therefore be able to move freely throughout the Schengen area.
Rigorous inspections at the external borders
In return, Croatia must assume rigorous inspections at the external borders of the Schengen area, commit to police cooperation to fight against organized crime or terrorism. It should also be noted that the 3.9 million Croatians will drop their currency, the Kuna, to adopt the euro from 2023.
Romania and Bulgaria, members of the European Union since 2007 and therefore before Croatia (2013), have been asking for this integration into the Schengen area for ten years, they will still have to wait. If they have fulfilled the technical criteria since 2011, and they have made progress in terms of justice and the fight against corruption, this was not enough to convince Austria and the Netherlands.
Vienna fears, for example, that the lifting of border controls will increase the arrival of migrants on its territory. This dismissal risks reinforcing Euroscepticism in Bulgaria and Romania.
Source: Europe1
I have been working as a journalist for over 10 years. In that time, I have covered the news from all corners of the world, and written about everything from politics to business.I’m now a full-time author, and my work can be found at Global happenings. My aim is to bring you up-to-date news and views on global affairs, in a format that is easy to read and understand.
