EU Enlargement Commissioner Olli Rehn has welcomed the vote in the German Bundesrat on the accession treaty of Bulgaria and Romania, which completes the ratification process in all member states.

The German parliament has ratified the entry of Bulgaria and Romania into the European Union, clearing the last hurdle in the EU for them to join next year.

It also completes the ratification process as a whole in the EU, since all the parliaments of the 25 member states and both acceding countries have now ratified the treaty.

"This finalizes the last legal step for the accession of the two countries. Thus I welcome Bulgaria and Romania as new member states in our Union on Jan 1 2007," the commissioner for enlargement has said.

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