Economists have recently questioned Romania’s chances to meet the 2015 euro entry goal, as the country is moving deeper into an economic crisis, with a widening budget deficit and swelling government debt. The opinions however are still divided, with some of the analysts saying Romania can still make the currency switch in 2015, if there is determination, while others have expressed a lack of confidence in the ability of the country to meet the target.

Stolojan: Many don’t want Romania to join the euro zone

Romanian authorities have committed to join the euro zone on January 1, 2015. The adoption date is deemed as unrealistic by certain analysts, as the country is still far from meeting Maastricht criterion for the public finances.

And the key obstacle to euro adoption is the budget deficit, as the terms require the governments to cap budget gaps at 3% of Gross Domestic Product. But Romania’s deficit is projected at almost 6% of GDP this year alone.

Theodor Stolojan (photo), first-vice president PDL, said there are serious doubts whether Romania’s target to join the euro area in 2015 will be reached, also given the fact that the European Union is considering applying a set of new criteria for the euro adoption, and the Romanians’ and authorities’ lack of determination.

“Although I reaffirm my position in favor of the euro adoption, I don’t see how Romania could still achieve its 2015 goal anymore, unfortunately. The severity of EC and BCE’s assessments over the country’s ability to meet the euro zone entry criteria on a medium and long term will be much higher”, said Theodor Stolojan.

The first VP of the Liberal Democratic Party stressed that there are still many people in Romania against the currency switch. The economist Theodor Stolojan said the country will join the 16-nation euro area only when Romanians and local institution