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Angela Cristea (EC): the worry that Romania will be left behind other states in the EU is not justified
Romania will not be left behind other states from the point of view of the speed of integration in the EU in case of a scenario where some states will have a higher freedom of decision as regards the speed for integration, this worry being unjustified in the context where Romania will participate to the European projects with a higher speed of integration, stated on Wednesday the head of the Office of the European Commission to Romania, Angela Cristea at the launch of the economic report for Romania in 2017 of the European Commission.
Some of the scenarios regarding the future of the EU after the determing step made by the UK of getting out of the union aims at ‘ Europe at several speeds’. This scenario will give the states the freedom to have a speed of integration higher or lower, and this eliminated the worries according to which Romania, one of the poorest countries could be left behind the others.
This worry is not justified in the context where Romania takes part in the projects with high speed of integration, stated Cristea.
‘ In this scenario, who wants to do more as regards the integration will do more. Who wants to do less, will do less. But, we don’t propose to divide the EU in states which will advance quicker and others who will advance with less speed. There is a worry, but this is not what we want’ Cristea said.
The head of the Office of the European Commission in Romania said that, at the level of the commission there is the wish that the UK be the first and the last state to exit the Union. The Brexit provoked heated discussions at the level of the European leaders connected to the way in which they cooperate. But, in all scenarios the economy is the essential domain to keep the EU competititve at international level.
‘We have discussed about how to keep the EU relevant on an international plan. If we don’t keep the things goind on, the EU will be less relevant in the decades to come’ warned Cristea.
The chairman of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker stated recently that Europe ‘ with several speeds’ which some of the leaders want after Brexit to the discontent of East-European countries does not want to create ‘ a new Iron Curtain’.
The leaders of some states in central and eastern Europe fear that Europe at several speeds will mean an isolation of those countries as regards the decision-making process at the level of the EU.