Romania expects to enter the European Union's free-travel Schengen zone this year, and any rejections that have nothing to do with fulfilment of technical criteria must stop, Interior Minister Lucian Bode said during a visit to Zagreb on Tuesday.

Romania, Bulgaria and Croatia had been preparing for years to join the European area of passport-free travel. While tourism-oriented Croatia was admitted late last year, Romania and Bulgaria were rejected because some of the member states believed they were not doing enough to stop illegal migration and prevent corruption.

Addressing a press conference after meeting with Croatian Interior Minister Davor Bozinovic, Bode said that different sensitive internal issues raised by some member states to justify their rejection of the Romanian membership application would no longer be considered a serious argument.

Bode said he counted on Croatia’s support, and Bozinovic confirmed it, saying that Romania’s accession would be good for that country, for the EU and for the entire Schengen area.

“Member states on the EU’s external borders bear the brunt of illegal migration. If there are more of us in the Schengen area, then our voice will be clearer and more convincing,” Bozinovic said.

After less than 10 years of EU membership, Croatia became a member of the Schengen area on 1 January 2023, joining the club of 26 countries and 420 million people in the world’s largest free movement area.

On the other hand, the applications by Bulgaria and Romania, which had joined the European Union in 2007, six years before Croatia, and met the technical conditions set by the European Commission, were rejected.

Both countries had made progress in the judicial reform and the fight against corruption, but when the process ended, Austria objected by saying that the two countries were not doing enough to stop illegal migration and fearing that the influx of illegal migrants would only intensify if the two countries were admitted to the Schengen zone.

The Netherlands eventually changed its position and gave the green light to Romania, but refused to do the same for Bulgaria, criticising it for corruption and insufficient respect for human rights.