Austria accuses Romania of blocking the participation of some of its army officers in NATO meetings

The government in Bucharest is blocking the participation of some Austrian officers in the meetings of the North Atlantic Alliance, as a reaction to Vienna's opposition to Romania's accession to the Schengen area, the Austrian press claims.

The two officers would have been waiting for accreditation by NATO for several weeks, but Romania would have requested some time to think.

Romania announced to NATO that it will give an answer on October 15, as more assessments of the Austrian military are needed to be accredited to NATO missions in the country.

Austria is not a member of the Alliance, but participates in the Partnership for Peace and NATO-led operations through a UN Security Council mandate.

Austria's participation in the Alliance's meetings was also blocked in 2016 by the Ankara government, the context then being Vienna's veto of Turkey's accession negotiations to the European Union.

Translated by: Radu Matei