council of the european union

Bulgaria and Hungary support the European integration of the Western Balkans, but this support hinges on substantial reforms, adherence to the Copenhagen criteria for membership, and the cultivation of genuine good neighborly relations. This was emphasized by President Rumen Radev after his meeting in Budapest with Hungarian counterpart Tamas Sulyok.

On Wednesday Greece filed a written statement with the Council of the European Union stating it will not support Albania's EU accession process as long as the case of the imprisoned ethnic Greek mayor elect of Himare, Fredi Beleri, remains unresolved.

Negotiations for Bulgaria and Romania's entry into the Schengen area won't face a formal vote during the Council of the European Union's meeting on December 5, Euractiv reports.

The Cyber Center in Bucharest could become operational by the middle of this year, and Romania will have to allocate a third of the budget devoted to digitalization through the National Recovery and Resilience Program for this project, Minister of Research, Innovation and Digitalization Ciprian Teleman told a speciality conference on Friday.

Romania has closed 11 files in the field of agriculture, rural development and fisheries in the six months in which it held the Presidency of the Council of the European Union, compared to four as originally proposed, and the most important file for the country was the one on unfair commercial practices, Agriculture and Rural Development Minister Petre Daea told AGERPRES.

The Romanian Presidency at the European Union Council has 80 files concluded at mid-term and this thing shows "the seriousness which Romania treats the European issues with," Deputy Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Florin Iordache said on Monday.

Romania's President Klaus Iohannis on Friday welcomed visiting Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs of Croatia Marija Pejcinovic Buric to discuss political dialogue, economic co-operation and the state of play in the Romanian speaking communities of Croatia and the Croatian minority in Romania.

European Union's cohesion policy needs to be continued and strengthened under the future EU financial programming, given its essential role in bridging gaps among regions, as well as when establishing solid bonds between communities, Romanian Prime Minister Viorica Dancila told the 8th European Summit of Regions in Bucharest on Thursday.

AGERPRES special correspondent Tudor Martalogu reports: The Romanian Presidency at the Council of the European Union will not stray from the principles of respecting the common European values, fundamental rights and freedoms and the rule of law, Justice Minister Tudorel Toader gave assurances on Wednesday in presenting the priorities in the field of justice in the Committee on Civil Liberties,

Minister-delegate for European Affairs George Ciamba on Monday presented Romania's priorities at the helm of the Council of the European Union during a meeting with the head World Bank's Office in Bucharest (country manager for Romania and Bulgaria), Tatiana Proskuryakova.