Pushbacks, vetoes, boycotts… What will the Schengen dispute mean for CEE?

On December 8th, Austria blocked EU members Romania and Bulgaria from joining the Schengen area, quoting fears of uncontrolled irregular migration as a main explanation. In response, in both countries, calls for a boycott of Austrian companies followed. What lies behind Austria’s veto and what consequences will it have for the EU and the region? Why can individual states block decisions of that magnitude for other EU members? Do we witness another face of Euroscepticism, in which “vetoism” is a tool of countering supranationalism? Finally, what measures should be taken to improve the decision-making processes at the EU-level? 

We discussed these and other questions together with: 

Mihai Razvan Ungureanu, former Prime Minister of Romania

Vladislava Gubalova, Senior Research Fellow, Centre for Global Europe, GLOBSEC Policy Institute

Daniela Apaydin, Research Associate, Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe

Sebastian Schäffer, Managing Director, Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe 

Moderation:

Malwina Talik, Research Associate, Institute for the Danube Region and Central Europe.

Watch the discussion here: