Austria, Romania mull EU, bilateral ties

BUCHAREST, Romania, May 2 (UPI) -- The presidents of Austria and Romania met Tuesday to discuss issues concerning Bucharest's entry next year into the European Union.

Austria's President Heinz Fischer and his Romanian counterpart Traian Basescu on Tuesday reviewed steps the Bucharest government took in reaching European standards to join the EU, the Rompres Romanian news agency reported.

Fischer's 2-day visit is important for Romania because Austria holds the rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, and this week the European Commission is to deliver a monitoring report on Romania.

Romania's accession to the EU was a major topic of the talks, Rompres said.