This year, Romania celebrates 10 years since its accession to the EU. Did Romania gain from its EU membership?
Undoubtedly. Romania’s accession to the EU marked the end of an highly complex preparation stage, which began in 1995, when Romania submitted its application for membership, and which entailed – in terms of legislation, economy and administration – an effort to adopt EU rules and acquis.
Internally, this alignment effort has lead to profound social, political and economic changes. Romania has taken steps towards acknowledging and guaranteeing its citizens’ fundamental rights, property protection, and also created mechanisms for ensuring the development of a market economy. Another significant positive effect of Romania’s EU membership was the diversification of financial resources, as the State began accessing European funding. Externally, as a consequence of its tighter relations with the EU and NATO, Romania became more credible to investors and, on the other hand, secured its access to the largest trade market, with the highest GDP in terms of purchasing power.
These are just a few of the arguments meant to highlight the benefits of Romania’s EU membership; however, one observation has to be made – 10 years after its accession, Romania is not yet fully integrated. Accession to the Schengen area and the Eurozone are two pending objectives and it is still unclear when they will be fulfilled…
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