BRUSSELS (AP) 鈥 European Union ministers on Thursday agreed to let Bulgaria and Romania fully integrate into Europe鈥檚 ID-check-free travel zone, known as the Schengen area, by lifting land border controls from next year, the EU's Hungarian presidency said.
Bulgaria and Romania joined the Schengen area after years of negotiations, providing free access for travelers arriving in both countries by air or sea.
However, land border checks remained in place due to opposition, chiefly from Austria, over concerns that the two countries were not doing enough to prevent migrants from entering without authorization.
鈥淚nterior ministers have just adopted a decision to lift internal land border controls with and between Bulgaria and Romania,鈥 the Hungarian presidency posted on X. 鈥淎 great victory for Bulgaria, Romania, and all of Europe!鈥 Land border checks will end from Jan. 1.
Romania鈥檚 Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said the decision would be a 鈥渕ajor benefit鈥 to his country鈥檚 economy and enable 鈥渇aster journeys home for the millions of Romanians鈥 living and traveling within the Schengen area.
Freedom of movement is central to European integration. More than 420 million people live in the Schengen area, and their freedom to move across borders helps businesses and tourism to flourish.
Romanian President Klaus Iohannis called it a 鈥渘atural and necessary step鈥 that will significantly reduce wait times at borders, lower logistical costs for businesses, and attract foreign investors.
鈥淪chengen membership has been a strategic objective for our country,鈥 he said in a statement. 鈥淥ver time, there have been numerous obstacles, despite Romania鈥檚 technical readiness to meet Schengen standards for many years.鈥
He added that Romania would 鈥渃ontinue to act responsibly to protect and strengthen the EU鈥檚 external borders鈥 to manage illegal migration.
The Schengen Area was established in 1985. Before Bulgaria and Romania鈥檚 partial admission, it was comprised of 23 of the 27 EU member countries, along with Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein. Around 3.5 million people cross an internal border each day.
Economists from the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences calculated that with the decision, the total positive financial effect for Bulgaria would amount to 800 million euro ($840 million) per year.
Bulgarian Interior Minister Atanas Ilkov said it was 鈥渁 historic day for Bulgaria, for Bulgarian citizens, for Bulgarian businesses, for the government.鈥
鈥淭his is a well-deserved result of all our efforts over the past years, efforts made by all employees of the ministry of internal affairs,鈥 he said. 鈥淭hese efforts included physical security at the Bulgarian-Turkish border, using all available resources.鈥
Ilkov added that last week, 鈥渃olleagues dismantled yet another organized criminal group involved in illegal migration鈥 and that random checks at the Bulgarian-Turkish border will continue.
On Thursday at Bulgaria鈥檚 Kulata border checkpoint with Greece, known for its huge traffic jams for trucks and tourists, most drivers hailed the decision.
Nazum Kasumov, a 61-year-old truck driver, told The Associated Press that full Schengen accession "should have happened a long time ago. "We usually queue here for two days,鈥 he said, adding that drivers face similar lengthy delays at other checkpoints.
鈥淚f there鈥檚 no border check that will save a lot of nerves (and) delays," said Nikolay Iliev, another truck driver waiting at Kulata. 鈥淲e are fully accepted in Schengen, and that makes me very happy.鈥
The Schengen area is one of the main achievements of the European project. It started as an intergovernmental project between five EU countries 鈥 France, Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands and Luxembourg 鈥 and has gradually expanded to become the largest free travel area in the world.
However, several Schengen member countries, including the Netherlands, Austria and Germany, this year reinstated some land border checks, over concerns ranging from migration to security. Some EU officials warned the reimposed checks could undermine the scheme鈥檚 goals.
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McGrath contributed from Sighisoara, Romania; Veselin Toshkov from Sofia, Bulgaria; and Valentina Petrova from Kulata, Bulgaria.
