The ÖVP, the party of the Austrian chancellor Karl Nehammer, is not opposed to the full accession of Romania and Bulgaria to Schengen only through the decisions taken at the governmental level, but also on a political level, where they do not want to vote on the electoral program of the EPP, including because of the enlargement.
Nehammer's party, another blow given to Romania PHOTO Profimedia
ÖVP, the party of the Chancellor of Austria, does not agree with the political manifesto of the EPP, which is to be approved in Bucharest, because it has among its commitments the issue of Schengen expansion, according to Kurier.
“We have clear positions and a clear attitude as a popular and European party, we support them and we cannot deviate from them. There are many good suggestions and important points in the manifesto, but at the same time there are also some red lines for us”, said the general secretary of the People's Party, Christian Stocker.
“We cannot agree with nuclear power in Austria. We are and remain against nuclear energy”, said the Austrian. The ÖVP is also clearly against abolishing the principle of unanimity in the field of foreign and security policy, Stocker said.
Another red line for the ÖVP is the EU's planned phase-out of combustion car engines. “This is one of the essential positions for us in European politics and it is missing from the EPP manifesto. We are in favor of openness to technology and against bans,” Stocker added.
ÖVP also does not agree with the full accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen Area. “The Schengen system is broken. We need to fix the system and not cover it upStocker said in a statement.
Chancellor Karl Nehammer will speak on behalf of Austria on Thursday afternoon, in Bucharest.
