Poland offers Romania Schengen support, closer cooperation (Roundup)

Oct 26, 2010, 18:31 GMT

Bucharest - Polish President Bronislaw Komorowski on Tuesday pledged his full support for Romania's efforts to join the European Union's border-free Schengen zone next year.

Romanian Prime Minister Emil Boc, who met with Komorowski in Bucharest, used the occasion to indirectly rebuff suggestions from some EU quarters that Roma migration should cause concern about his country's Schengen accession.

He said the decision should be based only on agreed-upon technical conditions, and not 'other problems.'

When it comes to learning from Poland, Boc said, Romania should be inspired by its use of EU funds. He said he will make it a priority in 2011 to secure more available money from Brussels by lining up the needed Romanian co-financing for projects.

Komorowski ended his two-day visit to Romania on Tuesday. Earlier in the day, he had pledged along with his Romanian counterpart, Traian Basescu, to boost cooperation between the two countries within the European Union and NATO.

'I welcome the crucial progress achieved today toward even stronger future cooperation,' Komorowski said.

A common action plan based on the agreed-upon strategic partnership between the two countries has been signed.

Cooperation between Poland and Romania will henceforth not be limited to regional level, but also take place 'within the European Union and the NATO alliance,' Komorowski stressed.

'We will have the opportunity to voice our common opinion in terms of security and also a common approach to the strategy paper for Lisbon,' he added, referring to a November summit in the Portuguese capital at which NATO is to decide on a new security concept.

A NATO anti-missile shield is among the issues to be considered. Komorowski said the two countries will have many opportunities for joint ventures in that area too.

Both Komorowski and Basescu expressed support for the strategy paper drafted by NATO Secretary General Anders Fogh Rasmussen, with Basescu saying that it 'is by and large consistent with Romanian and Polish demands.'

However, he went on to say that he had brought up a few items he would like to see changed in the paper. Romania, for instance, does not understand why Georgia is listed 'only as a partner' in the document, even though the country was promised accession during a 2008 summit in Bucharest, he said.

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