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Talks are in progress for PM Ciolos's visit to Washington earlier this year
Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos announced on Monday that talks are in progress since earlier this year for a visit to the United States; he has been invited, but no date was set so far, he mentioned.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has been invited to Romania.
"I understand that he intends to come [to Romania] soon, probably this spring, at any rate during the first half of the year, but no specific date has been confirmed yet," Ciolos added in a media briefing at the Government headquarters.
U.S. Ambassador Hans Klemm says he will prompt on every occasion Secretary of State John Kerry to visit Romania, and hopes Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos will pay a visit to Washington.
In a meeting with journalists in Bucharest on Monday, the American ambassador to Romania reminded Foreign Minister Lazar Comanescu's open invitation to Kerry. He also voiced his optimism about some high-level bilateral meetings in 2016.
It's been too long since a U.S. secretary of state has visited Romania, Klemm asserted.
As for PM Ciolos' possible visit to the United States, no schedule has been decided so far, he mentioned.
U.S. Ambassador to Romania Hans Klemm also said he was not very optimistic about Romania's chances to join the United States'Visa Waiver Program in 2016, considering that the rejection rate for Romanian visa applicants is higher than the legal maximum of three percent, and the political context in America is also rather unfavourable.
The late statistical data on visa denials showed a positive trend, but the rate was still around 10pct.
According to Klemm, all the other procedural steps have been taken, except the ratification by the Romanian Parliament of a relevant agreement of October 2015.
The ambassador spoke to the media about the possible American contribution to lowering the rejection rate, namely better explaining throughout Romania - not just in Bucharest - the requirements for getting a visa. Application is expensive, he pointed out, so those who do not qualify should refrain from applying.