While accession to the Schengen zone hinges on the fulfillment of a set of technical criteria, Paris and Berlin's main argument was that the Balkan pair had failed to show tangible progress in the fight against corruption and organised crime.
Iako pridruživanje schengenskoj zoni ovisi o ispunjavanju niza tehničkih kriterija, glavno obrazloženje Pariza i Berlina bilo je da te dvije balkanske zemlje nisu pokazale opipljiv napredak u borbi protiv korupcije i organiziranog kriminala.