The President of the European Commission, Romano Prodi, and the European Union's Enlargement Commissioner, Guenter Verheugen, are in Romania for a first assessment of the country's readiness to start negotiations on EU membership.

Romania is considered to be one of the poorest and least prepared of the EU candidate countries and the two EU representatives focused their talks on economic issues.

Correspondents say they tried to impress on the country's leadership and trade unions the need to make economic and democratic reforms irreversible.

Later today, Mr Prodi and Mr Verheugen will take the same message to Bulgaria, which also seeks EU membership.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service