Marcel Ciolacu participated on Friday, January 10, in the official event of the US decision to include Romania in the Visa Waiver Program, organized at the Victoria Palace. He stated that Romanians will be able to travel without visas starting at the end of March.
PHOTO: Facebook Marcel Ciolacu
“It is one of the moments of joy to be prime minister. These moments will last very little time, I think two or three positive news that we will see, then we will enter again into a normality of being the prime minister of Romania. But with all the emotion I will enjoy this historic moment with you.
Romanians will travel without visas in United States of America starting at the end of March, it’s a historic moment that we’ve actually been waiting for for over 16 years. In fact, history seems to be unfolding very quickly for Romania in this period. Only 10 days have passed since we were fully admitted to the Schengen area, and today we received from the Department of State and the Department of Homeland Security the official announcement of the inclusion of our country in the Visa Waiver Program. There are two essential events that confirm Romania’s recognition on the international stage and in its relationship with strategic partners“, Ciolacu said.
It also mentions Romania’s accession to Schengen, starting from January 1, 2025.
“Today we can speak with pride about Romanian success, about the success of our entire society, and I hope that together with Schengen, this will be a turning point in terms of how we must act to achieve success. For far too long we have been frozen in lamentations. Always blaming others, constantly talking about injustices and second-class citizens produces nothing good, except frustration. This is a superficial way of working that has proven over time to be bankrupt in relation to the achievement of the country’s great objectives.
Today we demonstrate without a doubt that when we have a clear plan, people determined to apply it and reliable partners, we cannot fail. This is also in terms of the objectives of a Government and in terms of the objectives of a coalition and it can be applied to the workplace of each of us, but especially it can be applied in politics“, said the prime minister.
Last but not least, the prime minister thanked the Romanians in the diaspora, but also the former footballer Gheorghe Hagi, who was present at the event, along with his daughter, Kira.
“But behind this success are the efforts of millions of Romanians both from the country and from the diaspora who demonstrated that their dignity must be respected. I especially thank the Romanian citizens who responded to the calls and renewed their visas, thus contributing decisively to the reduction of the refusal rate.
I see in the hall our great Gheorghe Hagi, the ambassador of Romania with a mandate won through his own talent and ambition. Thank you very much, Gica, for joining the visa renewal campaign. I think Oscar Cordoba still has nightmares about you from the 1994 USA World Cup memorial goal. Then we needed a visa, now we just have to qualify so we can all support Ianis and the other tricolors at next year’s World Cup“, Ciolacu also said.
