German official: Romania risks losing the right to vote in the EU

Romania risks losing the right to vote in the EU if the current Government doesn’t withdraw the bill amending the Criminal Code, said Gunther Krichbaum, the president of the European Affairs Committee of the German Parliament (Bundestag), reports local Digi24.

The EU can enable this penalty when there are systemic threats to the rule of law in a member state. The procedure has never been used, but Poland was recently threatened with suspending voting rights for violation of press freedom.

The German official asked the European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker to urgently convene Romanian Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu in Brussels and ask him to repeal the bill.

Krichbaum sees as encouraging that the population opposes the measure, which he describes as a blow to the rule of law. EU must support the demonstrators, he said. The German MP stated that the situation in Romania will be discussed at the next meeting of the European Affairs Committee of the Bundestag.

Another warning came to Romania yesterday from the European Commission First Vice-President Frans Timmermans, who said that the country risks losing EU funds.

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