Schengen
2011 will remain in the European Union's history for the reforms of the two community symbols - the common currency area (the euro area) and the border-free area (Schengen). The migrant influx to the southern EU borders and the accession process of Bulgaria and Romania have clearly shown the need for reforms of the Schengen acquis. Like the economic governance, the Schengen governance changes aim at protecting the community interests at the expense of reducing the influence of individual member states.
Werner Faymann, Angela Merkel | © Council of the EUEurozone and Schengen -- Two Parallel Realities, Crossing in Greece
How convenient would it be if once again it turned out that the sole culprit for not dealing with the refugee crisis were Greece. But it is not. And it is very dangerous to go towards isolating it and even talking about "sacrificing" it in the name of the survival of Schengen lik ...
Rumyana Bachvarova, Petre Toba | © Council of the EUSchengen Is Closing
Until recently the main engine of European integration in the EU was the euro area. After the crisis, which started in 2009, significant changes of key EU legislation happened, even including minimal changes in the founding treaties. By the outbreak of the refugee crisis there was ...
Meglena Kuneva | © Council of the EUThe Knight of Rueful Schengen
Whatever they tell you, be sure it is about Schengen, because Deputy Prime Minister Meglena Kuneva has embarked on a mission impossible – to raise the question of Bulgaria’s Schengen membership at every European meeting. “Bulgaria not joining Schengen eight years into its EU me ...
Meglena Kuneva | © Council of the EUEurope of Leaders
Perhaps the cliché that Europe moves forward, pushed by crisis situations to which it finds solutions, will prove correct. In the case of the financial crisis the answer was a much closer cooperation, much more discipline, and many more common decisions. Today’s refugee crisis& ...
| © Vlada HRCroatia Has Reached the End of the Beginning
Croatia's path to the EU membership seems cleared after on March 26th Stefan Fule, the EU enlargement commissioner, personally handed the last monitoring report of the European Commission at an extraordinary meeting of the Croatian government in Zagreb. The meeting took place without excessive ...
| © Council of the EUBulgaria's Schengen Shame
In the current situation of political mess in Bulgaria, a cacophony of various demands for an overhaul of the political system, of the Constitution and even of the economic orientation, hardly the news that Bulgaria's accession to the Schengen space of security is moving away is among the most ...
| © EUThe Effects of the Arab Spring Unleash a Crisis of Mistrust in the EU
On June 14, 1985 on the board of the ship "Princess Marie-Astrid", in the vicinity of the unknown Luxembourg village of Schengen, located near the border between Germany and France, 5 of the then 10 Member States of the European Community put their signatures under one of the most significant an ...
| © European Parliament AudiovisualThe European Parliament and the Council at War over Schengen
This was the only possible way to reach a compromise in the Council - with these words Danish Minister of Justice Morten Bodskov explained to MEPs why last week the Council of Ministers practically took away the Parliament`s role as a co-legislator on a key proposal for reform of Schengen. The m ...
| © The Council of the European UnionWatch Schengen, Think About the CVM
At their last meeting (8 March 2012) the EU interior ministers discussed the guidelines to strengthen the political governance of the Schengen area. In September, 2011 the European Commission presented a communication on the issue, where it committed to verify compliance with Schengen legislatio ...
| © European UnionGreece Under Pressure Also in Terms of Schengen
Germany and Austria threatened to reinstate border controls, if Greece failed to take measures to secure its border with Turkey. "The border is open like a barn door!," Austrian Home Affairs Minister Johanna Mikl-Leitner said, cited by international news agencies. "The question still remains wha ...
| © euinsideWhy Is the Romanian CVM Report “Better” than the Bulgarian?
In the five years since the introduction of the Co-operation and Verification Mechanism with Bulgaria and Romania (CVM) the two countries have established a tacit competition which of them would receive a better assessment by Brussels. Their problems are common, and hence, they have common targe ...
| © European Union 2012Bulgaria Has One Last Chance to Show Results under the CVM
Bulgaria has one last chance to prove that it has made progress in fighting corruption and organised crime, as well as in reforming its judicial system. This is the tone of the interim report of the European Commission on Bulgaria's progress under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (CVM) ...
| © The Council of the European UnionRemember Schengen and Wait for the CVM reports
18 September 2011: "I think the entry into Schengen is a national priority for both the government and the Bulgarian citizens." (24 Hours daily) 12 December 2011: "It is important for us a political decision to be adopted for the first stage of abolishing of borders - sea and air borders. [...] ...
| © European UnionSchengen But Not This Time
The European Parliament has reaffirmed its support for the Schengen accession of Bulgaria and Romania. MEPs have adopted a resolution, stating that Bulgaria and Romania "have fulfilled all the criteria" for joining, and additional criteria cannot be imposed on these two countries. As you know, a ...
| © The European UnionA Matter of Trust
The accession of Bulgaria and Romania to Schengen has been postponed, due to internal problems in the Netherlands and Finland. This is the official explanation the Bulgarian citizens were given by the government, in the face of Minister of Foreign Affairs Nickolay Mladenov and Deputy Prime Minis ...
| © The Council of the European UnionCommissioner Malmstrom: I'm Disappointed with the Member States
The unsuccessful attempt of Bulgaria and Romania to receive at least partial Schengen membership has understandably overshadowed the other topics discussed at the Justice and Home Affairs Council on the 22nd of September. But the issue of the two countries' adoption cannot be viewed outside the ...
| © European UnionRomania: Schengen is Partnership between Equal Partners
Why to accept us in Schengen since we behave as if we are still not members of the EU? This is what I thought the other day when I understood that Minister Tsvetanov (Tsvetan Tsvetanov, Minister of the Interior of Bulgaria) talked before Bulgarian media somewhere, again not in the specially desi ...
| © The Council of the European UnionThe Netherlands: We Don't Want to Decide Now and Regret Later
At the meeting of EU Justice and Home Affairs Council on 22 September two countries, Finland and the Netherlands, have vetoed the accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the Schengen area. euinside is presenting herewith the arguments of the two countries. Dutch Minister for Immigration and Asylum ...
| © The Council of the European UnionFinland: It Is Too Early for Bulgaria and Romania to Join Schengen
At the meeting of EU Justice and Home Affairs Council on 22 September two countries, Finland and the Netherlands, have vetoed the accession of Bulgaria and Romania to the Schengen area. euinside is presenting herewith the arguments of the two countries. Minister of the Interior of Finland Päivi ...
| © The Council of the European UnionBulgaria and Romania Remain Outside Schengen Indefinitely
With great delay the news conference after the morning session of the Justice and Home Affairs Council turned into a short statement of the Polish Presidency with the promise the essential news conference to take place later today, when the journalists will receive answers to all their questions ...
| © European Commission- Audiovisual Services To Schengen and Back
Until recently, the Bulgarian government preferred to comment on the Schengen topic within an officious discourse, while adhering to the thesis that Bulgaria had met the technical criteria for its accession to the Schengen area. Neither the embedding of a special text in the Dutch government's c ...
| © eu2005.lu/ONTThe spirit of Schengen has not been respected by Europe
Italy and France have been officially cleared by the European Commission last week, for their much controversial unilateral reaction aimed at solving the problem with the North-African immigrant flow. In April this year Italy has issued the North-Africans temporally residence permits for the Sch ...
| © European UnionFirst defeat of EU's electoral reform
The proposal for an electoral reform in the European Union of Andrew Duff, a member of the European Parliament (ALDE, Britain) has been rejected because of disputes in Parliament over "for" or "against" more Europe. The disputes reached philosophical and even poetical dimensions, but in the end ...
| © European Commission- Audiovisual Services MEPs insist to have a say in changing Schengen rules
Migratory influx from North Africa should not be used as a pretext for reintroduction of internal borders within the European Union - this has been unanimously stated by MEPs from all groups and countries during the debate on Schengen in the European Parliament on 6 July. Maros Sefcovic, Vice Pr ...
| © European UnionSchengen is for the lighter greens
During the Apartheid in South Africa there was a political anecdote, which was more or less about the following: In an attempt to eradicate racial division, the authorities in South Africa have decided that there will be no more blacks and whites, all people will be green. As a result, at a bus ...
| © European Union 2011 PE-EPThe EP rebuked member states for the "six pack" and Schengen
The latest European Council was of key importance - maybe it was the only point on which MEPs proved to agree with European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and European Council President Herman Van Rompuy. They reported to Parliament on the council's results, but were sharply criticised ...
| © The Council of the European UnionEU is introducing a safeguard clase in Schengen
The leaders of the European Union recommend the introduction of a safeguard clause as part of a new mechanism, aimed at triggering certain rules in the cases when the Schengen area is put at risk. This becomes clear from the draft conclusions from the two-day summit in Brussels, which euinside h ...
| © European UnionA positive report in July would lead to a positive evalutation for Schengen
The member states do not believe technical evaluations, it becomes clear after Bulgaria and Romania were tapped on their backs but again did not receive a date for accession to the Schengen area of security. In spite of the good technical preparedness, in spite of the invested efforts, the polit ...
| © The Council of the European UnionDenmark reinstates unilaterally border control
Denmark is to restore the customs control on its internal borders with Germany and Sweden, with the measure expected to take effect within two to three weeks. The news came on the eve of May 12th meeting of the EU interior ministers on migration. The authorities in Copenhagen hurried up to reass ...
| © eu2005.lu/ONTSchengen - solidarity is also a responsibility
To have solidarity and to be tolerant, while at the same time being responsible and unappeasable with the rule of law. Sounds simple but it's not, as it appears. This was shown also by the hearing in the European Parliament of European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso and Internal Affair ...
| © euinsideEurope tightens control in the Schengen area internally and externally
Changes to the rules of the Schengen zone - could they be initiated because of some 20,000 Tunisian immigrants who have arrived on the Italian island of Lampedusa and the tension between Italy and France that followed on the issue of these people's movement within the European Union? Furthermore ...
| © blogs.ec.europa.eu/malmstromMEPs from LIBE: Bulgaria to take additional measures on its border with Turkey
Bulgaria and Romania should get a date for their accession to the Schengen area by the end of 2011, according to the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs (LIBE) in the European Parliament. MEPs adopted by a large majority the reports of Carlos Coelho (EPP, PT) on the evaluation ...
| © European Commission- Audiovisual Services Does Europe restore border barriers?
In order to live, Schengen must be reformed, French President Nicolas Sarkozy said in Rome. He and Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi demonstrated friendly relations, in spite the tension between the two countries because of the Tunisian immigrants. While protesting for being left to deal ...
| © European Commission- Audiovisual ServiceTrust and progress under the CVM will decide Bulgaria's accession to Schengen
Bulgaria made another step forward to Schengen, but only in terms of technical criteria. "The Working group on the Schengen acquis has approved the evaluation report regarding the Schengen Information System SIS / SIRENE, where it has been found that Bulgaria covers the necessary requirements. A ...
| © Audiovisual ServiceGreece is trying to cope with illegal immigrants influx
Bad hygiene conditions and congested cells, lack of enough toilet facilities and even a place to sleep. This is a fragment of the picture of Greek overcrowded detention facilities for illegal immigrants as described in Human Rights Watch's December report. In the past several months Greece has b ...
| © euinsideTsvetan Tsvetanov: There will be arduous debates on Bulgaria's accession to Schengen
An arduous debate is expected on Bulgaria's accession to the Schengen area, the Minister of the Interior of the country, Tsvetan Tsvetanov commented. He took part in a public discussion on the occasion of the end of the Belgian EU Presidency, organised by the Bulgarian branch of the Pan-European ...
| © European Commission- Audiovisual ServiceThe long way to Schengen
I tried to count how many times Prime Minister Boyko Borissov reported in 2010 the restored Brussels's trust in Sofia as a success of his party GERB (Citizens for European Development of Bulgaria). And how many times the entry of Bulgaria into the Schengen area in March 2011 was declared as an a ...
| © European Commission- Audiovisual Service