Austrian President slams his own government that blocked Romania’s accession to Schengen

Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen says he regrets his government’s decision, which blocked Romania’s Schengen accession, and which has now led to the situation in which the Austrian economy is threatened by Romanian retaliation.

According to the Austrian president, the Schengen blockade does not represent a solution to the migrant problem and calls for dialogue. “I deeply regret the Austrian government’s decision to block the #Schengen accession of Romania and Bulgaria. It is true that Austria is in a difficult situation due to the very high number of asylum seekers. But the Schengen blockade does not contribute to a solution. On the contrary, the economy the Austrian company is now threatened with fines as a result of the Romanian countermeasures. We can only face the flight and migration challenges together with our EU partners. I hope that a solution through dialogue is possible soon,” Alexander Van der Bellen tweeted.

Ich bedaure die Entscheidung der österreichischen Bundesregierung, den #Schengen-Beitritt Rumäniens und Bulgariens zu blockieren, außerordentlich.

Richtig ist, dass Österreich aufgrund der sehr hohen Anzahl an Asylwerber:innen in einer schwierigen Situation ist. (1/3)

— A. Van der Bellen (@vanderbellen) December 9, 2022

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs urgently called the ambassador to Austria, Emil Hurezeanu, to the country. The call is related to the negative vote that Austria gave to Romania regarding the accession to the Schengen area. The MAE announces: “It is a political gesture that underlines Romania’s position of firm disagreement with Austria’s conduct and indicates the decision to reduce the current level of relations with this state.”