Bulgaria, Romania Schengen accession one of Hungary’s greatest achievements, says official

The decision by European Union interior ministers on Bulgaria and Romania’s accession to the EU’s passport-free Schengen zone is one of historic significance and one of the most important achievements of the Hungarian EU presidency, the chief of Hungary’s Permanent Representation to the EU said on Friday.

Speaking to Bulgarian news agency BTA, Bálint Ódor noted that on Thursday EU interior ministers decided to remove checks on persons at the internal land borders with and between Bulgaria and Romania from Jan 1, 2025. “This achievement is not only significant for Bulgaria and Romania but also for the European Union and, of course, for Hungary,” Ódor said.

He said that during its six-month presidency of the Council of the EU, Hungary had managed to achieve a consensus on key policy objectives in areas like migration and the common agriculture policy, “which will guide EU actions for the next five years”. He said progress had also been made on the Hungarian presidency’s top priority of improving the bloc’s competitiveness.

Source: FB/Hungarian Police

Ódor said Hungary had also aimed to speed up the accession procedure of the Western Balkan countries. He said the opening of the first stage of accession talks with Albania had been another breakthrough. In response to a question, he said transatlantic relations will always be crucial for the EU. Hungary, he said, had a “good relationship” with US President-elect Donald Trump, adding he believed the country could “act as a bridge”.

Tuzson: Hungarian presidency will have last impact on EU competitiveness

Hungary’s EU presidency will be talked about “for a very long time” as its approach to competitiveness will have a lasting effect on how the whole bloc functions, Bence Tuzson, the justice minister, said in Brussels on Friday.

Speaking before a meeting of the Council of Justice Ministers, Tuzson said Hungary’s presidency had highlighted the importance of taking a broad approach to competitiveness that “permeates the operations of the entire European Union … in all areas, from civil law, the economy to criminal law.”

Competitiveness, he added, was a priority as Europe lagged behind its competitors. The Hungarian presidency has promoted matters that help improve the bloc’s competitiveness, the minister said.

Concerning the council meeting’s agenda, Tuzson said it would include a proposal to promote the application of artificial intelligence in justice, in order to make procedures faster and more efficient.

In terms of criminal law, Tuzson said it was important to adopt a planned directive aimed at preventing people smuggling. “If the EU wants to protect Europe’s borders it will need to take more effective measures against smugglers,” he said. He called for “firm and clear” action by the EU “to facilitate prevention of people smuggling across borders.”

The aim is to make EU members more competitive

Tuzson said passing European legislation against the sexual harassment and exploitation of children was a priority of the Hungarian presidency. The resulting new rules will increase international cooperation to investigate such cases and to take perpetrators to court, he added.

The Hungarian presidency made “unprecedented progress” on a directive concerning economic competitiveness and bankruptcy procedures, Tuzson said, adding that uniform regulations were necessary “to make European countries increasingly competitive and help them stand the test of time in decades to come”.

The minister was asked about money laundering charges against former EU commissioner Didier Reynders, and he said “such cases undermine trust in the EU” and called on the European Commission to do everything to restore people’s trust in European institutions.

Speaking at a press conference after the meeting, Tuzson said one of the most important achievements of the Hungarian presidency had been a change in direction in the bloc in terms of shifting the focus of EU policies to the improvement of European competitiveness.

Tuzson said the Hungarian presidency had managed to ensure that every EU policy has to be considered from the point of view of whether it helps improve competitiveness.

The Budapest Declaration on a new European Competitiveness Deal establishes a comprehensive principle that competitiveness has to be a key consideration in all areas, the minister said.

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