Grindeanu: Romania will adopt euro after Romanians' incomes reach EU level

Romania will adopt the euro only after the income of Romanian citizens will be similar to that of those in other EU countries, Romanian PM Sorin Grindeanu said.

„Let’s make sure that this monetary convergence will be made in parallel with the income convergence. The adoption of the euro can only be made after, we believe, also the income of Romanians will be close to those in other EU member states,” Grindeanu said at the reunion of the interministerial committee for the adoption of the euro, held at Victoria Palace.

According to the Romanian PM, Europe is experiencing a period marked by debates on the future of the European project and they should be seen as an opportunity and not an obstacle.

„There are talks about a Europe with more speeds, and these should not separate us, but to show that we all are heading into the same direction. And I believe that today’s meeting is also serving this purpose. We must prove that Romania is determined to continue to support the cohesion policies inside the EU and to show that we all have the same goal – a stronger Union, where member states have the same target,” Sorin Grindeanu.

„We must learn from the experience of countries that already adopted the euro starting from a similar position with that of our country. We all speak of a major change which, naturally, is met with resistence, a reluctance to change, but precisely that is why we are here today and will also be here in the future, so this process can be prepared as thoroughly as possible.”

The meeting at Victoria Palace saw the participation of the National Bank of Romania, Mugur Isarescu, but also of Minister of Finance Viorel Stefan and Minister of Economy Mihai Tudose.