Iohannis: Romania's Schengen accession bid - a cause of frustration, we put in intense efforts to advance our case

President Klaus Iohannis emphasized on Thursday the effort he and the government team put in to advance Romania's Schengen bid.

Asked in Brussels whether progress is being made on Romania's joining the Schengen Area, given that the Croatian Prime Minister addressed the European Parliament's plenary on the need to boost the accession process, President Iohannis said this is a procedural step the Romanian side has undertaken as early as in 2011.

"Even though it doesn't seem like much is being done, I can assure you that we got intensely engaged in this case. My team, the government team and I personally have had a whole series of discussions. The matter is complicated also by the fact that a long time has passed since the actual assessment and the Croatian Prime Minister's address to the European Parliament is a procedural step in obtaining the legislative body's opinion. We took this step in 2011, but there are more steps to be taken. Negotiations are underway, we are engaged in negotiations and we hope that in the end we will get a favorable solution on this case, which, to be honest, is a cause of frustration for us as well," the President said.

President Klaus Iohannis is attending on Thursday and Friday in Brussels the meeting of EU and Western Balkans leaders, a European Council meeting and a Euro Summit in inclusive format. AGERPRES