Brussels to press for US visa free entry to EU newcomers
The EU is mounting pressure on the US to introduce a visa free regime towards the bloc's "new" member states.
While American citizens can travel throughout the EU with no visa, the countries that joined the EU in May 2004 - minus Slovenia - have still not been accepted to the US visa-free regime for tourists staying in the country for up to 90 days.
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Of the 15 "old" member states, Greece is also not a part of that regime.
The European Commission is expected to file a fresh report in late June about EU visa policy and the US, as well as Australia and Canada which also impose assymetric visa rules on some EU states.
EU interior ministers suggested after their meeting on Tuesday (21 February), that the commission should include in its report "possible measures to be taken in relation to third countries with which full visa reciprocity has not been achieved."
Sanctions like visa obligations for the countries' diplomats have been mentioned in the past as a possible retaliatory move.
The issue was highligted by commission president Jose Manuel Barroso on his trip to the US, in early February.
"I appreciate the efforts already made by the US here but we must accelerate this and end this situation of discrimination against the new member states," he said at Pittsburgh University.
"As many as 14 million jobs on both sides of the Atlantic depend on transatlantic commercial ties, meaning that not only Europe, but also the United States, has much to lose if protectionism rises and globalisation's wings are clipped."
Unclear conditions
Washington argues that it is holding bilateral talks with individual countries on the matter, not with the EU as a whole.
In response to Mr Barroso's appeal, US foreign ministry official Tony Edson pointed out they are committed to "work closely" with those governments to help them meet legal conditions to join the visa-free regime.
"While any road map developed with our central European allies places the onus on these countries to meet those requirements, it also serves as an indication to them that we welcome their inclusion at a future point when they have taken the necessary steps to meet the legal requirements," he explained.
But Brussels and national capitals argue these individual road maps are quite vague and give no clear indication on when exactly the new member states could start enjoying visa-free travel to the US.
"We want clear benchmarks and full transparency for these countries," said a commission spokesman, adding that while the EU has played ball on new US passport security rules, the US has not reciprocated on visa-free access.
The US demands high-tech security features in visitors' passports and low previous refusal rates of entry, at below 3 percent.
Washington monitors how many tourists break the rule on the 90 day threshold after being granted a visa, as well as the economic situation of visiting nationals' countries, watching for the risk of economic migrants.
Most central and east European member states still don't comply with the rules, diplomats say, but they hope EU-level pressure can speed up the procedure.
"We would like the US to show their recognition for us as their political partners and allies, and stop judging us only by such mathematical criteria," one new member state diplomat noted.