Romania Arrests 77 Border Agents

Romanian authorities arrested seventy-seven customs officials and border police on suspicion of corruption in an operation on Thursday. They allegedly took bribes in exchange for allowing cigarette smugglers to bring their goods across the border.

According to reports, the group - which worked on Romania's border with Ukraine - had been under surveillance for the past six months.

Traffic through customs was completely halted while the operation was carried out, and anticorruption officers are searching the homes of the detained officials.

"The action by the anticorruption officers is part of Romania's efforts to combat corruption at its borders. It is also tied to the fact that Romania wants to show France and Germany that it is concerned about the corruption issue, which is a main requirement for joining the Schengen space," Dudu Ionescu, a former interior minister, told RFI Romania.

Romania and its southern neighbour Bulgaria had hoped to join Europe's Schengen zone in March this year, but this appears increasingly unlikely as their bids have met with resistance from some powerful Schengen members, including Germany and France. Opponents of the bid argue that the two countries have not yet fulfilled requirements on fighting corruption and securing Europe's external borders.