Leaders of the European Union attending the informal summit in Nagyszeben/Sibiu on May 9 have adopted the Sibiu Declaration, a document outlining the leaders’ commitment to “one Europe (…) united, through thick and thin.”
The document also contains a list of 10 commitments, which the leaders unanimously agreed upon, including defending the borders of one Europe that will be a “responsible global leader.”
“We reaffirm our belief that, united, we are stronger in this increasingly unsettled and challenging world. We recognize our responsibility as Leaders to make our Union stronger and our future brighter, while recognizing the European perspective of other European States,” the Sibiu Declaration posted on the European Council’s website reads.
During the summit, President Klaus Iohannis expressed his belief that Romania would “shortly” become part of the Schengen Area. He highlighted his efforts to pave the way for this Romanian dream but admitted that “things don’t always go as we expect.” “There still are political forces whose leaders want to be above the law, who don’t like it when fundamental institutions of the rule of law are investigating and bringing to light corrupt deeds and the theft of public money, be they national or European,” Iohannis said, as cited by Agerpres.
As we previously reported, Prime Minister Viorica Dăncilă and the President were at odds when it came to the information EU summit. She wasn’t invited to the high-level meeting – for reasons explained by former President Traian Băsescu – but she felt aggrieved when journalists asked her whether she would attend the summit. Despite all of this, she apparently hoped for a last-minute “offer” (invitation) from the President, because she was very close to Sibiu today, visiting two adjacent cities in Transylvania – Gyulafehérvár/Alba Iulia and Kolozsvár/Cluj-Napoca – and spent Wednesday night at a four-star hotel just 70 km away from Nagyszeben/Sibiu for Wednesday night, just in case, according to PSD sources speaking with Adevarul.
As far as we know, the invitation wasn’t handed over, and now the information summit has officially commenced. What’s left is the open-air concert scheduled for 8:00 p.m.
Title image: Family photo of the EU leaders. Image source: Donald Tusk/Twitter
