ForMin Aurescu on the situation of Romanians stranded in Mexico: Unfriendly official attitude

Romania's Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu said on Wednesday referring to more than 100 Romanian nationals stranded at Cancun airport in Mexico that it was an "unfriendly attitude" on the part of the Mexican officials, adding that he asked for urgent clarification of the reasons for such decisions. Aurescu said that at this moment there are 114 Romanian nationals at the airport in Cancun, and 102 had been returned to Romania. "We are deeply concerned about the situation faced by citizens planning a vacation in Mexico and who are affected by the recent decisions of the Mexican authorities. It is inadmissible what is happening; it is an unfriendly attitude on the part of the Mexican officials towards Romanian nationals. This is a situation that risks leading, as far as Mexico is concerned, to loss of tourists, money and credibility as a travel destination because of such actions," the minister told a news conference. Aurescu said he urgently requested clarification of the reasons for these decisions. "I will send today, in my turn, a message to my Mexican counterpart in which I will reiterate that such decisions cannot be arbitrary, they must be very clearly substantiated, based on individual assessments, on a case-by-case basis. We have requested and will continue to call on the Mexican side for a transparent and predictable approach to the regime of foreign tourists in Mexico, especially in the current pandemic context," Aurescu said. He mentioned that Romanian tourists stranded at the airport will be provided with assistance, including from the Romanian Consulate in Miami. "I have raised with the Mexican officials the issue of waiting conditions for return. Romanian nationals reported that the interviews were conducted only in Spanish, reported abusive behaviour by border police, lack of water and food, as well as improper places in which they are kept," Aurescu said. He pointed out that steps had been taken with Germany's Lufthansa airline to send a larger aircraft to bring the 114 Romanian citizens to Europe. "The fact that a sovereign state can decide on access of foreigners to its own soil must not and cannot violate their rights in the process of implementing such decisions and must avoid offensive situations. Romanian nationals must not be discriminated against in any situation; they must be treated with respect, they must not be put in difficult situations, even if we are talking about a situation in which, based on well-founded reasons - if that is the case in this situation - a Romanian citizen is denied entry to another country. Pending clarification of the situation (...), we are urging Romanian nationals to avoid travelling to Mexico for the time being," added Aurescu. Several Romanian tourists have been stranded at the Cancun airport, with Mexican border authorities seizing their passports and mobile phones without explanation. AGERPRES (RO - author: Oana Ghita, editor: Mihai Simionescu; EN - author: Corneliu-Aurelian Colceriu, editor: Adina Panaitescu)