Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies Marcel Ciolacu declared on Friday after meeting in Rome with Italian Minister of the Interior Matteo Piantedosi that Romania wants to give a new boost to the strategic partnership it has had with Italy since 1997, according to Agerpres.

„Romania wants to refresh the strategic partnership it has had with Italy since 1997. Together we can improve this diplomatic bond meant to help including the over 1.2 million-strong Romanian community for whom the Italian state has become a second home. In this context, I thanked today Italian Minister of the Interior Matteo Piantedosi, one of the most vocal advocates of Romania’s Schengen accession case,” Ciolacu wrote on Facebook.

He added that the Italian official confirmed him that he will further „strongly” support Romania’s bid.

„Rome does not share the short-sightedness of other European leaders, like those of Austria, who instead of addressing European issues from the perspective of all member states, limit themselves to acting according to internal and purely electoral considerations. That is why I mentioned that building new fences between the European states is definitely not a solution! It is neither efficient nor ethical for us to be separated, as some Austrian leaders would want,” Ciolacu said.

Agerpres