Minister of the Interior Päivi Räsänen to visit Romania and Moldova
Finnish Minister of the Interior Ms Päivi Räsänen will visit Romania and Moldova on 1–4 December. During her visit, she will meet Mr Radu Stroe, Minister of Internal Affairs of Romania, and Mr Dorin Recean, Minister of Internal Affairs of Moldova.
In Romania on 2 December, Ms Räsänen and Mr Stroe will discuss matters related to Romania's readiness to join the Schengen area and the situation of the Roma minority in the country. In Moldova on 3 December, Ms Räsänen and Mr Recean will discuss border control issues and the visa liberalisation dialogue from the perspective of justice and home affairs. She will also meet representatives of Moldovan civil society organisations.
From Moldova to EU Justice and Home Affairs Council in Brussels
On 5 December, Ms Räsänen will participate in the EU Justice and Home Affairs Council (JHA) in Brussels. At this meeting, the Ministers will discuss the work of the Task Force for the Mediterranean on the basis of a Commission report. The issue was addressed in the aftermath of the Lampedusa accident at the October JHA Council which decided to establish a high-level task force to prevent similar tragedies from happening in the future.
The Council's agenda also includes discussion on Bulgaria's and Romania's accession to the Schengen area.
In addition, the Council will discuss issues related to the free movement of persons and the associated final report by the Commission. The Ministers will also resume their dialogue started at the June JHA Council on foreign fighters and returnees from a counter-terrorism perspective, in particular with regard to Syria. In addition, the Ministers will talk about the future development of the Justice and Home Affairs area after the year 2014.
For further information, please contact: Ms Laura Yli-Vakkuri, Director General, tel. +358 71 878 8250