The European Commission has formally proposed to the EU Council a decision to allow Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia to fully participate in the Schengen area.

 This was announced by European Commissioner Ylva Johanson at a briefing in Brussels, "European Truth" writes.

 "22 countries are now in Schengen and now it's time to add three more. Today I present a communique with full support for the accession of Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia. It's time to say congratulations," Johansson said.

 The European Commissioner emphasized that the three countries deserve all the privileges that come with Schengen participation.

 According to her, Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia have proven that they meet all the necessary criteria, including compliance with border controls.

 "They have the infrastructure and the necessary means to manage external borders, including possible security threats," she said.

 Bulgaria and Romania successfully completed the process of joining the Schengen Agreement in 2011. The Council of the EU recognized the completion of the process, but for more than 11 years no decision on the separation of internal borders has been made.

 In December 2021, the Council confirmed that Croatia had fulfilled the conditions necessary to join the Schengen area. The evaluation process lasted from 2016 to 2020.

 Following today's announcement, the EU's Justice and Home Affairs Council will vote on the full accession of Bulgaria, Romania and Croatia to the Schengen area on December 8.

 The European Parliament in October called on member states to immediately allow Romania and Bulgaria to join the Schengen area. In November, the same decision was made regarding Croatia.