ForMin Odobescu meets EU ambassadors, discusses Romania's full accession to Schengen

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Luminita Odobescu, participated, on Monday, in a working meeting with the heads of mission of the European Union member states accredited in Bucharest, in the context of Hungary holding the rotating presidency of the Council EU.

During the meeting, topical issues of the European agenda were addressed, such as the geopolitical context, the transition to the new institutional cycle, the developments in the Union's enlargement policy, the EU's competitiveness, the transatlantic partnership and the accession to the Schengen area, according to a release from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs sent to AGERPRES. In this context, Odobescu highlighted the importance of completing the process of Romania's accession to the Schengen area as quickly as possible. In this sense, she pointed out the pro-active involvement of Romania in the implementation of the solutions agreed at the EU level for the efficient management of migration, as well as for ensuring the security of the Union's external borders.
The Romanian minister highlighted the importance of unity in action and common solutions in addressing hybrid challenges and threats that target EU member states and partners, in order to strengthen the Union's resilience and defend European values. She pointed out the importance of advancing the expansion of the Union, as a strategic investment of the EU in the immediate vicinity. Minister Odobescu reiterated, at the same time, Romania's constant support for the European path of the Republic of Moldova and Ukraine, as well as the importance of strengthening the political dialogue with the partners in the Western Balkans, in order to advance the processes of European integration in the region.

At the same time, she reaffirmed the special importance of the EU-US transatlantic partnership, which must remain one of the basic pillars of the EU's external action, in the light of multiple common interests and objectives, as well as in the context of various international challenges.

Luminita Odobescu emphasized, at the same time, the importance of strengthening European competitiveness, highlighting, in the context, the need to maintain particular relevance for cohesion policy and the Common Agricultural Policy in the new context, as well as the importance of paying increased attention to strengthening the capacity of the European defense industry, respectively the continuation of investments in the objectives aimed at connectivity and ensuring the process of climate transition in a balanced and realistic manner.