Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
A memorable day in the history of Romania and Bulgaria as residents of both countries can now travel freely in the Schengen area. According to what Euronews wrote in Brussels, adding that at midnight, on New Year's Eve, "Bulgarian Interior Minister Atanas Elkov and his Romanian counterpart Catalin Predoiu stood at the border checkpoint, located on the Danube Bridge, marking the official accession of the two countries to the Schengen area and granting Romanian and Bulgarian citizens the right to travel freely in the border-free zone in Europe. They participated in this occasion to celebrate the abolition of borders.
Freedom of movement: an important moment for Romanians and Bulgarians
The combined 25 million residents of the two countries now join the nearly 450 million EU citizens who already enjoy freedom of travel in the Schengen area.
The two countries first joined the European Union 17 years ago - negotiations to enter the Schengen area began in 2011.
When the European Commission gave the green light to the two countries in December, it was an important signal that Romania and Bulgaria could now feel like official members of the bloc.
No more queues at the borders
The area has been established Schengen was first introduced in 1985 and now includes 29 countries, mostly EU members, plus some non-EU countries, including Iceland and Switzerland.

For Bulgarians and Romanians, this means they will now be able to travel by car to France, Spain and Norway without a passport. Drivers and passengers no longer need to show any identity documents, and vehicles can pass without control.

Before now, residents of these countries had to queue for long periods at the 30 land borders between Romania and Bulgaria to wait for official checks.

However, for at least the first six months, travelers will be subject to random border checks to deter criminal activity, with a particular focus on large vehicles.

It could also mean that more Europeans will visit Romania and Bulgaria as well, giving a new boost to the tourism sector in both countries.,