Romania is among the countries with the lowest crime rate in the world, offering a more favourable situation in this regard than many Western European countries, the Ministry of Interior (MAI) stated on Friday, citing reports from the US State Department and the European Commission.

Thus, according to a press release of the MAI sent to AGERPRES, official international documents highlight Romania's significant progress in combating crime, confirming its status as a safe country. In recent years, Romania has recorded figures below the European and international average for crimes such as robberies, thefts and other acts committed with violence.

"According to reports from the US State Department and the European Commission, Romania is recognized as a very safe country for citizens and tourists. In the 'Report for American Citizens Traveling Abroad' (available on travelmaps.state.gov/TSGMap), Romania is indicated as having a low and very low risk of crime," the same source states.

The Ministry of Interior shows that the relevant indicators regarding safety in Romania target the low degree of the general level of crime, the concern regarding home burglaries, the risk of robberies and muggings, thefts of and from cars, violent attacks, but also the very low level of attacks motivated by ethnic origin, religion or gender.

Other indicators of low safety in Romania are drug-related problems and vandalism, while a moderate increase in crime having been recorded in the last five years, the same press release states.

"All these data represent a recognition of the efforts made by the employees of the Ministry of Interior (MAI) - police officers, gendarmes, border guards and firefighters - who carry out their missions with professionalism every day. We emphasise that the structures of the MAI collaborate with other government institutions with responsibilities in public order and national security, alongside which they acted promptly and in an integrated system. At the same time, in order to achieve these objectives, the Ministry of Interior has developed a very good collaboration with international partners, especially with institutions from European Union states, with the structures of the European Commission and of the USA, which is a strategic partner," the same press release reads. AGERPRES (RO - author: Sorinel Penes, editor: Georgiana Tanasescu, En - author: Cristina Zaharia)