Ilhan Kyuchyuk and Vlad Botos demonstrated in front of Austria's Interior Ministry

Bulgarian and Romanian MEPs Ilhan Kyuchyuk from the "Renew Europe" group and Vlad Botos has organized a demonstration in the center of Vienna. It was against the Austrian veto on the membership of Bulgaria and Romania in Schengen. Among the protesters who gathered outside the building of the Interior Ministry was Helmut Brandstätter of Austria's liberal NEOS party.

According to the Bulgarian MEP his country has met the criteria for Schengen membership since 2011 and joining the area of free movement is inevitable.

"The veto imposed by the government of Austria serves internal political purposes and seeks to create a sense of security on the backs of Bulgaria and Romania", Kyuchyuk said.

He added that it was important for Sofia and Bucharest to jointly send clear messages on the topic.