The European Commission continues to support the accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen area, according to the latest report on the border-free area’s functioning, made public on Monday. According to the document, both Romania and Bulgaria fully meet the technical criteria for the accession. The report, that covers the period from November 2012 to April 2013, is assessing the implementation of the visa granting procedures as well as security at the Schengen area’s external borders. We remind you that the two countries’ accession, initially set for the spring of 2011 , has been postponed repeatedly because of reservations expressed by some EU member states. The lack of progress in reforming the justice system and in fighting against organised crime were frequently invoked by the latter.

The Romanian Parliament’s foreign policy committees on Monday started debates, attended also by the country’s Prime Minister Victor Ponta, on the agreement between Belgrade and Pristina towards normalizing bilateral relations. The document was signed on April the 19th in Brussels, under the aegis of the European Union and of the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs, Catherine Ashton. Romania is one of the five EU member countries which did not recognize the independence of Kosovo, and which the European Parliament urged to do so, in a resolution passed this April.

Romanian President Traian Basescu thanked Prince Charles of Britain on Monday for his contribution to the preservation of biodiversity in the historical province of Transylvania. During the meeting Prince Charles confessed he was impressed by the warm welcome he received every time he came to Romania. Also on Monday, Prince Charles met with Romanian PM Victor Ponta. The heir to the British throne visits Romania regularly, as he ownes several old houses in Transylvania. Interested in the preservation of historical monuments in this part of Romania, he got involved in projects designed to preserve some old settlements, some of them included on the UNESCO heritage list.