Romanian senior official Winzer says citizen mobility one of Romania's priorities in EU-UK relationship

State Secretary for Inter-institutional Relations and Legal Affairs with Romania's Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MAE) Cristian Winzer welcomed Portugal's ambassador in Bucharest Fernando Teles Fazendeiro on Monday to discuss Brexit, highlighting the shared interests of the two countries in protecting the rights of European citizens in the UK.

Winzer had a Monday meeting on the UK exiting the European Union.

In a press statement released by MAE, the Romanian official is said to have pointed out the importance of advancing the talks on the withdrawal agreement, notably the achievement of substantial progress in two key areas of negotiations: the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland and governance.

At the same time, Winzer voiced hope that, in the run-up to the European Council meeting in October, the parties will agree on all the provisions of the withdrawal agreement that will ensure an orderly and predictable exit of the UK.

The talks highlighted the common interests of Romania and Portugal centred on protecting the rights of European citizens in the UK.

"Protecting the rights of European citizens, including the Romanians, living, working or studying in the UK, is our priority objective in the negotiations. Another important aspect to us is the correct implementation of the withdrawal agreement through the application of administrative procedures in view of obtaining a new status. As far as the future relationship between the European Union and the UK goes, citizen mobility is one of Romania's priorities, and we believe it is in the interest of both parties that the future agreement should provide for an ambitious regulatory framework for the mobility of European citizens. The European Union should not leave room for interpretation because the principles of reciprocity and non-discrimination are important pillars of our future relationship with the UK post-Brexit," Winzer is quoted as saying in the statement.

He also pointed out the need to identify new ways of co-operation between the European Union and the UK through a deep and comprehensive partnership based on a balance between rights and obligations that reflects exactly the common goals of the two parties while respecting the EU's decision-making autonomy.

"The officials reiterated the importance of maintaining a unified and coherent voice of the 27 member states in the negotiations, which would actively and decisively contribute to a fair and beneficial agreement between both sides," according to MAE. AGERPRES (RO-author: Gina Stefan, editor: Antonia Nita; EN - author: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu, editor: Adina Panaitescu)