Justice – Debates continue today in Romania’s Parliament on the articles of the law on the status of judges and prosecutors. The special parliamentary committee has already been discussing for several days the last bill from the package of new justice laws drafted by the Government. On Monday the senators and deputies from the special parliamentary committee continued the article-by-article debate of the draft law on the status of judges and prosecutors and managed to adopt approximately 180 articles out of the 294 of the law. Most of the articles passed in the form submitted by the executive. Also on Monday, the report on the draft law on judicial organization was adopted by the parliamentary committee, a document that today enters the plenary debate of the Chamber of Deputies, as the first body notified.
Tokyo – The Romanian Prime Minister, Nicolae Ciucă, and the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Marcel Ciolacu, are in Japan, where they participate, today, in the state funeral organized in honor of the former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, who had a decisive contribution to the launch of the actions meant to take the relations between the two countries at the level of a strategic partnership. The participation of 4,300 people, including 700 from abroad, was announced for the ceremony. Among them are approximately fifty leaders or former leaders of foreign countries, including the US vice-president, Kamala Harris, and the president of the European Council, Charles Michel. Shinzo Abe was killed, on July 8, by a former officer, with a homemade gun, during a campaign speech. On Monday, Nicolae Ciuca met with his Japanese counterpart, Fumio Kishida, with whom he discussed the security and defense component, one of the four cooperation pillars of the future Strategic Partnership, and also economic cooperation, given that Japan is the largest Asian investor in Romania. The Japanese Prime Minister assured his Romanian counterpart of his full support for the conclusion of the Strategic Partnership and the consolidation of bilateral cooperation, including at external level, in the regional and international context that requires the protection of democracy and the rule of law.
Referendum — The so-called referendums on the annexation to the Russian Federation of the Ukrainian territories occupied by Moscows troops are ending today. Held as of Friday in the separatist regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, in the east, and in those invaded since spring, Kherson and Zaporozhe, in the south, the alleged people’s consultations were denounced as a “simulacrum” by Ukraine and its Western allies. The so-called G7 group, gathering the worlds seven richest democracies, has warned that it will “never recognize” the results of the referendums, while Washington has vowed a “swift and severe” response, through further economic sanctions, to these annexations, which follow the model of the annexation of the Ukrainian peninsula of Crimea in March 2014. Communist China, a close partner of Moscow, did not denounce the referendums, but demanded respect for the “territorial integrity of all countries”. The so-called local authorities, instated by the invading Russian army, announced that the “provisional results” of the referendums should be announced on Tuesday evening or in the coming days. The Russian Parliament will then have to vote on a text formalizing the integration of the four Ukrainian regions into Russia.
Corruption – The Romanian President, Klaus Iohannis, said on Tuesday, upon the anniversary of 20 years of existence of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, that the work of anti-corruption prosecutors must be doubled by a clear, coherent legislation that guarantees the independence of the judiciary and creates the necessary mechanisms for the good functioning of the prosecutors’ offices. The president also said that the reform of the justice laws must be completed in accordance with the recommendations of European bodies. Klaus Iohannis emphasized that, with each step taken in the fight against corruption at all levels, Romania is closer to concluding the MCV, joining the Schengen area and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. “A society in which corruption is sanctioned gives citizens confidence in the state and tells investors and external partners that there is predictability and stability” President Iohannis concluded.
Football – Romanias national football team defeated, on Monday evening, in Bucharest, Bosnias national team, score 4-1, in Group 3 of League B of the Nations League, but was relegated to the third echelon. With only two victories and a draw in six games, the Romanians are on last position in the group, being outrun by Bosnia, Montenegro and Finland. Selector Edward Iordănescu announced that he was going to discuss with the management of the specialized federation if he left or remained coach of the representative team. For Romania, which also missed qualification to this years World Cup in Qatar, the next competition will be the Euro 2024 preliminaries, hosted by Germany. (LS)
