Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has proposed that a decision on the full membership of Bulgaria and Romania in the Schengen area be adopted by the end of the year. He said this today when presenting the programme of Hungary's rotating EU presidency to the European Parliament in Strasbourg. 

On 10 October, the EU Council will discuss Bulgaria and Romania's progress towards full Schengen membership. 

Meanwhile, Bulgarian Prime Minister Dimitar Glavchev said that migration pressure had decreased by 71 per cent compared to 2023. Speaking at the Consultative Council on National Security, the prime minister dismissed reports that about 100km of the Bulgarian-Turkish border fence was missing. Checks from the air and on the ground showed that the fence was in place, Glavchev reiterated. 

Given the situation in the Middle East and the potential migrant pressure, video surveillance and, if necessary, patrols should be stepped up, the caretaker prime minister said.