Romania fails to uphold same-sex couples' rights, European court rules

FILE PHOTO: A gay couple hugs during a LGBTQ+ pride parade near a bus stop that has anti-LGBT graffiti message sprayed on it, in Bucharest, Romania, March 14, 2020. Inquam Photos/Octav Ganea via REUTERS

BUCHAREST (Reuters) - Romania has failed to enforce the rights of same-sex couples by refusing to recognise their relationships, the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) said on Tuesday in a ruling which will force policymakers to expand protections for the LGBT community.

Socially conservative Romania decriminalised homosexuality in 2001, decades later than other parts of the European Union, but still bars marriage and civil partnerships for same-sex couples.