Radio România Internațional

Tag: Birchall

  • August 24, 2019 UPDATE

    August 24, 2019 UPDATE

    SHOW Baneasa Airport in northern Bucharest on
    Saturday played venue for the biggest air show in Romania, BIAS 2019. The event
    was devoted to the celebration of 50 years of activity by the Henri Coanda
    International Airport and 15 years since Romania joined NATO. The 11th
    edition of BIAS included aerobatics and other feats of spectacular flying
    performed by some of the 100 planes attending the show.








    CANDIDACY About one thousand Social Democrats from the PSD, number one in
    the government coalition in Bucharest, on Saturday convened in a congress to
    launch the candidacy of Romania’s incumbent Prime Minister Viorica Dancila for
    the presidential election in November. The country’s incumbent president Klaus
    Iohannis has also announced his intention to run for a second term in office
    with support from the main opposition party, the National Liberal Party. Dan
    Barna, leader of the opposition USR-PLUS, will also run for the presidential
    seat and so will Calin Popescu Tariceanu, leader of ALDE, part of the present
    ruling coalition. Also during the congress, the PSD’s National Executive
    Committee has also adopted proposals for the ministers the Prime Minister is going
    to submit to president Iohannis on Monday. So, the party’s secretary general,
    Mihai Fifor will be heading the Interior Ministry, Ana Birchall will become
    Deputy Prime Minister for Strategic Partnerships while MP Iulian Iancu will be
    Deputy Prime Minister in charge of economic affairs. Dana Girbovan had been proposed for the
    Justice Ministry, but the move attracted a lot of heat from the opposition who
    recalled that Girbovan was a staunch supporter of the justice reforms that had
    been proposed by PSD and ALDE with the alleged intention to gain control over
    the magistrates and hinder the anti-graft fight.












    TENNIS Romanian tennis player Simona
    Halep, the world’s number 4, will be up against US challenger Nicole Gibbs on
    Tuesday, in the first round of US Open, the year’s last Grand Slam tournament. Four
    Romanians are on the competition’s main draw. Sorana Cirstea will be taking on
    Katerina Siniakova from the Czech Republic, Monica Niculescu will play Dayana
    Yastremska while Mihaela Buzarnescu is pitted against Andrea Petkovic of
    Germany. Another Romanian qualified, Ana Bogdan will meet Harriet Dart of
    Britain. The only Romanian in the men’s competition, Marius Copil, will be
    playing French Ugo Humbert.












    PLEDGE Countries that suffered at the hands of the
    Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union have pledged to take action for raising
    awareness about Europe’s totalitarian past, 80 years since the pact that
    triggered WWll had been signed. Foreign Ministers from Poland, Lithuania,
    Latvia, Estonia and Romania have said in a joint statement that the memory of
    the victims prompts them to promote historical justice. On Friday, a day
    devoted to commemorating the victims of Fascism and Communism, Romania’s
    president Klaus Iohannis conveyed a message underlying that honoring these
    victims should not be restricted to commemoration alone, but firm action must
    also be taken in accordance with the principles of authentic democracy. The
    head of the Romanian state went on to say that given the present-day attempts
    to downplay the crimes of fascism and communism, firmly denouncing the two
    ideologies is a must. Russia has this week made public what it believes to be
    the pact’s original documents signed on August 23rd 1939, under
    which Russia and the Nazi Germany pledged not to attack each other. The pact
    also contained a secret protocol, under which the territories of other
    countries were divided between the two powers. While Poland and the Baltic
    states had been entirely occupied, Romania was forced by an ultimatum in 1940
    to cede to Moscow its eastern territories, which today belong to the Republic
    of Moldova and Ukraine.








    (translated by bill)

  • Tougher Measures against Crime

    Tougher Measures against Crime

    The Justice Ministry in Romania toughens
    up punishment for severe crimes against the person at the same time changing
    conditions for searching a house as well as probation rules.






    A project on amending the Penal
    Codes has been tabled by Minister Ana Birchall, who said the government’s
    purpose is to have regulations to prevent tragedies like the one that recently
    happened in Caracal, southern Romania, where a serial killer kidnapped, raped
    and murdered two teenagers.






    Kidnapping is punishable by prison
    sentences between 2 and 8 years. The age limit for probation will increase from
    60 to 65 years and so will other cumulative conditions such as the one forcing
    the criminal to serve 25 years in prison instead of 20 at present. The
    anti-mafia department DIICOT will also have more competences.






    Ana Birchall: We propose an
    extension of DIICOT competences also for the aggravating versions of the crimes
    of kidnapping and enslaving persons, due to the severity and complexity of such
    offences.






    The new amendments will allow the
    police to carry out a house search right away and not in 24 hours as the law
    presently stipulates. Furthermore, police will be allowed to carry out searches
    at night between 8 pm and 6 am in severe cases.






    The aforementioned amendments are
    to be passed through emergency ordinances and come after more than 16 thousand
    inmates have been released since October 2017 through the compensatory appeal
    law endorsed by former Justice Ministry Tudorel Toader, backed at that time by
    the PSD-ALDE coalition. Some of these inmates who were serving sentences for
    murder, theft or rape relapsed into criminal behavior shortly after their
    release.






    Another project proposed by the
    government is aimed at increasing the performance of the 112 emergency service.
    One of the most controversial rules is about preventing the purchase of prepaid
    cards without identification since almost half of the total number of emergency
    calls last year proved to be prank calls. According to Interior Minister Raed
    Arafat, the method, which has already been implemented in 22 European
    countries, is meant to discourage prank callers at the same time enabling
    rescuers to locate the person who needs help.






    Raed Arafat A person calls for help but before being
    able to provide the necessary data, they may pass out. They may be alone and we
    will not be able to locate their position. We’ll call them once, twice and then
    it’s …over.






    Another amendment refers to the
    possibility of locating a caller by means of Google satellites with an accuracy
    of up to 50 meters as compared to 20 or 30 kilometers allowed by the present
    system.




    (translated by bill)



  • July 18, 2019

    July 18, 2019

    Helsinki — The Romanian justice minister Ana Birchall is participating on Thursday and Friday in the informal meeting of the Justice and Home Affairs Council hosted by Helsinki, where the participants will discuss the consolidation of the rule of law. This is the first meeting under the Finish presidency of the Council of the EU. Croatia is next at the helm of the Council of the EU in the first half of 2020. The agenda of the justice section includes a number of issues of interest for the consolidation of the EU’s justice, freedom and security areas. The participants will tackle the consolidation of the rule of law, the independence, quality and efficiency of the national justice systems and the importance of a fair trial as well as aspects related to detention and alternatives to it in the context of judicial cooperation over criminal matters. During a working lunch, the ministers will also talk about European civil justice in a multilateral context. On the sidelines of the informal meeting, Ana Birchall will also meet with some of her counterparts for the EU member states.



    Electric Castle – Thousands of fans attended the opening of the 7th edition of the 2019 Electric Castle festival in Bonţida, near Cluj Napoca in northwestern Romania, on Wednesday evening. Performing were such artists as Elder Brook, Grandmaster Flash, Dr Big and Made from Scratch. The festival is organized on the premises of the Banffy Castle, a heritage monument dating to the 15th century. The organizers have tried to present a great variety of musical genres. The festival area covers 300 thousand sq m, including 10 stages for musicians, a food area and thousands of places in the festival’s camping site. Performing at the Electric Castle 2019 is also Florence and The Machine, one of the most creative indie bands of the past decade, whose leader is singer, songwriter and founder Florence Welch. Other bands performing in the festival are the rock band Limp Bizkit that have 3 nominations for the Grammy awards and more than 40 million albums sold, Jared Leto, Bring Me The Horizon, Chvrches, Giggs, Lemaitre, Mono, Tommy Cash, Handsome Furs and Viagra Boys.



    Football — The return matches of the first preliminary round of the Europe League, in which 3 Romanian football teams are playing, have been scheduled for Thursday. Vice champions FCSB will play an away match against Milsami Orhei of the Republic of Moldova, after they defeated them 2-0 on home turf and CSU Craiova will play at home against the Azeri FK Sabail whom they defeated 3-2 in the away match. The winner of Romania’s Cup Viitorul Constanta will play directly in the 2nd preliminary round against the Belgian team FC Antwerp trained by the former Romanian international footballer Ladislau Boloni. On Wednesday Romania’s champions CFR Cluj qualified to the 2nd preliminary round of the Champions League after defeating on home ground the Kazakh eleven FC Astana 3-1 in the 2nd leg of the 1st preliminary round, after being defeated 0-1 last week in the away match.



    Exercise — Romania is participating alongside 11 NATO members in the Sea Breeze 2019 international military exercise that is unfolding until Sunday in Bulgaria’s territorial waters in the Black Sea. Over 2 thousand military from Albania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Greece, France, Italy, Poland, Romania, the US and Turkey are participating in the drill. The main objective is to boost interoperability and interaction between the naval forces of the participating countries. The exercise will include a simulation of a maritime security operation in case of a crisis. 26 combatant and auxiliary ships, 10 planes and helicopters are involved in the exercise alongside Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 and the Standing Mine Counter measures Force as well as representatives of various institutions, NGOS and state owned organizations.



    Income distribution — Romania is among the EU states with the biggest income inequalities, being outrun only by Bulgaria, Lithuania and Spain, show data published on Thursday by Eurostat, based on information gathered in 2017. Inequalities were calculated as a ratio between the income of the top 20% of the population (with the highest income) of a country and the income of the bottom 20%, based on the equivalent available income. In 2017, in the EU, this ratio was 5.2. Of the member states, the Czech Republic and Slovenia reported in 2017 the lowest income inequality ratio 3.4, Finland reported 3.5, Slovakia 3.5 and Belgium 3.8. The countries with the highest income inequality ratio were Greece 6.1, Latvia 6.3, Romania 6.5, Spain 6.6, Lithuania 7.3 and Bulgaria 8.2. The way in which income and assets are distributed in a society is indicative of the extent to which individuals have equal access to goods and services produce within a national economy. (translation by L. Simion)

  • June 20, 2019 UPDATE

    June 20, 2019 UPDATE

    DRAFT According to Romania’s Prime Minister, Viorica Dancila, the
    government is working on a draft amendment to the election legislation with a view
    to improving the voting process so that Romanian citizens from the country and
    abroad may be able to exercise this Constitutional right in as good conditions
    as possible. The Prime Minister has also added the executive will carry on with
    the investment programme as well as with activities related to Romania’s
    presidency of the EU – a mandate, which is coming to an end and which has met all
    its objectives as complex files have been dealt with and measures with a public
    impact have been taken. According to Dancila the Romanian presidency of the EU
    has drawn up and presented a reviewed version of the negotiation document for
    the future EU budget. The executive is also focusing on the emergency ordinance
    regulating the alternative transportation platforms such as Uber, Bolt and
    Clever.












    MEETING The Romanian presidency of the EU Council was very good, as
    solutions to a large number of files were found during it, Romanian president
    Klaus Iohannis said before the European Council’s meeting in Brussels on
    Thursday. Iohannis went on to say the summit hosted by Sibiu, in central
    Romania, on May 9th proved a very good opportunity for the adoption
    of a series of healthy principles in the EU’s strategic agenda for the period
    between 2019 and 2024. High on the agenda of the two-day summer summit in
    Brussels are official appointments to
    leading positions in the European institutions together with the future
    multi-annual budget of the EU, measures aimed at fighting climate change,
    foreign relations and the latest developments in the Brexit process. The
    Romanian president is also to attend on Friday the EURO+ Summit in enlarged
    format.








    ATTORNEY Romania is one of
    the most important partners for the United States in fighting transnational
    crime, according to US Attorney General William Barr, who said that the
    partnership has deep roots in a commitment to democratic values and the rule of
    law. This posting on the State Department website comes after a visit made this
    week by Mr. Barr to Bucharest. According to him, the visit he made to Bucharest
    provided an opportunity to reaffirm the fact that the rule of law is durable
    and that people and institutions have to be governed by just, transparent, and
    equally applied laws. At the same time, he said he hoped that Romania would not
    give up its fight against corruption. In Bucharest, the Attorney General was
    received by President Klaus Iohannis, and held talks with PM Viorica Dancila
    and Minister of Justice Ana Birchall.




    FOOTBALL Romania’s youth
    football team is preparing its Friday game against England as part of the Under
    21 European Championship, which is taking place in Italy and San Marino. The
    Romanian team started off on the right foot on Tuesday, crushing Croatia 4-1.
    France defeated England 2-1. Romania is at its second such presence in a final
    tournament, after the 1998 championship in Bucharest. The finals are scheduled
    for June 30.



  • 11.06.2019 (mise à jour)

    11.06.2019 (mise à jour)

    Visite – Le chef
    du Sénat de Bucarest, Călin
    Popescu-Tăriceanu, fera mercredi et jeudi une visite officielle en France, à
    l’invitation de son homologue Gérard Larcher. En tant que démarche de la
    diplomatie parlementaire, cette visite s’inscrit dans la direction de
    l’approfondissement et de la diversification du dialogue politique et du
    renforcement du caractère spécial de la relation amicale traditionnelle entre
    les deux pays, fait savoir un communiqué du Sénat. De jeudi à samedi, Călin
    Popescu-Tăriceanu participera également à Paris à la 20e réunion de
    l’Association des Sénats d’Europe.

    Gouvernement – Le président roumain Klaus Iohannis a signé mardi le décret désignant la nouvellement investie ministre de la Justice, Ana Birchall, vice-premier ministre par intérim des partenariats stratégiques. Rappelons-le, la semaine dernière, Klaus Iohannis avait refusé de nommer le sénateur social-démocrate Titus Corlăţean dans cette fonction. Selon le président, Titus Corlăţean avait géré de manière défectueuse le scrutin organisé à l’étranger en 2014, alors qu’il était ministre des Affaires étrangères. A l’époque, des dizaines de milliers de Roumains de l’étranger n’avaient pas pu voter pour les élections présidentielles de 2014.

    Ministre – Une motion simple contre le ministre roumain des Affaires étrangères, Teodor Meleşcanu, déposée par les principaux partis de l’opposition, a été rejetée mardi au plénum du Sénat de Bucarest. La motion portait notamment sur les problèmes survenus à l’étranger pendant les récentes élections européennes du 26 mai, Les parlementaires de l’opposition – Parti national libéral, l’Union sauvez la Roumanie et le Parti du mouvement populaire – accusent de manque de responsabilité M Melescanu et son ministère pour l’organisation du scrutin européen pour la diaspora. Pour sa part, le chef de la diplomatie roumaine s’est à nouveau excusé devant les Roumains de la diaspora qui n’ont pas pu exercer leur droit du vote le 26 mai. Néanmoins, il soutient toujours que son ministère avait rempli toutes ses obligations légales. Il a annoncé que, dans la période à venir, des consultations auront lieu dans les ambassades concernées pour établir les responsables, mais aussi pour prévenir ce genre de situation à l’avenir.

    UE – Chine – Le ministère roumain des Affaires étrangères a organisé mardi à Bucarest, dans le cadre de la présidence roumaine au Conseil de l’UE, une conférence internationale dédiée aux relations de partenariat stratégique entre l’Union européenne et la Chine. A cette occasion le chef de la diplomatie roumaine, Teodor Melescanu, a souligné que l’inter-connectivité entre l’UE et l’Asie a compté parmi les priorités de la présidence roumaine de l’Union. A son tour, le directeur général adjoint au sein du ministère chinois des AE, Yang Xiaoguang, a précisé que l’économie de la Chine et de l’UE comptaient, ensemble, pour 40% de la production mondiale. Au moment où le bloc communautaire et la Chine réunissent leurs forces, ils peuvent dynamiser le commerce global et promouvoir la croissance économique, a encore déclaré le responsable chinois. « La Chine est devenue un acteur global et un fournisseur important de technologie », a souligné aussi Zoltan Martinusz, directeur dans le cadre du Secrétariat général du Conseil de l’UE.


    Moldova – En tant que partenaire stratégique de la République de Moldova, la Roumanie estime que dans un Etat démocratique, la volonté des citoyens, exprimée par vote et reflétée dans la configuration politique du Parlement, est la seule à même de garantir un processus politique légitime, fondé sur le dialogue, lit-on dans un communiqué transmis mardi par le ministère des Affaires étrangères de Bucarest. La Roumanie réitère son appel au calme et à la retenue et met en évidence la nécessité de respecter les principes de l’Etat de droit et de garantir une transition pacifique et inclusive, pour la sortie de crise, précise le même document. Rappelons-le, la République de Moldova voisine est actuellement confrontée à une sévère crise politique, où plusieurs forces politiques s’accusent l’une l’autre d’avoir accaparé le pouvoir.

    Chişinău – La Procurature générale de la République de Moldova a ouvert un dossier sur le possible financement du Parti des socialistes du président Igor Dodon par la Fédération de Russie. Par ailleurs, le président élu Igor Dodon a annulé le décret signé par son remplaçant, Pavel Filip, (du Parti démocrate) qui décidait de la dissolution du Parlement et convoquait des élections législatives anticipées le 6 septembre prochain. Rappelons-le, le 9 juin, la Cour constitutionnelle moldave a suspendu Igor Dodon de ses fonctions de chef de l’Etat, le remplaçant par le premier ministre, Pavel Filip, en tant que président par intérim. Le Parti démocrate du controversé homme d’affaires Vladimir Plahotniuc considère que le gouvernement légal est celui de Pavel Filip, alors qu’un autre cabinet dirigé par la pro-européenne Maia Sandu fonctionne actuellement dans le siège du Parlement de Chisinau. Lundi a eu lieu la première réunion de ce gouvernement investi avec l’aide des socialistes, malgré la décision des juges de la Cour constitutionnelle d’invalider son investiture. Par ailleurs, Maia Sandu a assuré que son équipe réussirait à débloquer les financements extérieurs, notamment celui offert par l’Union européenne. Entre temps, la Commission de Venise a confirmé avoir reçu la solicitaion du secrétaire général du Conseil de l’Europe, Thorbjorn Jagland, qui demande d’urgence l’avis de la Commission à l’égard des récentes décisions de la Cour Constitutionnelle moldave, notamment celles visant la dissolution du Parlement de Chisinau. Un avis doit être adopté dans le cadre de la séance plénière du 21 juin.

    Météo – Les météorologues mettent en garde contre l’instabilité atmosphérique accentuée jusqu’à mercredi dans la nuit sur la plupart du territoire de la Roumanie. On attend des pluies à verse, des phénomènes orageux et du vent très fort, ainsi que de la grêle. Par endroits, les précipitations pourraient dépasser les 40 l/m carré. Dans les 24 prochaines heures les températures maximales iront de 27 à 34 degrés.

  • May 21, 2019 UPDATE

    May 21, 2019 UPDATE

    Meeting — During Romania’s presidency of the Council of the EU, Bucharest hosted on May 20th and 21st the informal meeting of the environment ministers from the EU member states. The debates focused on the measures to be taken at European and international level to create the necessary framework for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Priorities target mainly the reduction of energy consumption. The European Commissioner for environment, maritime affairs and fisheries Karmenu Vella announced that soon the EC would adopt new guidelines for integrating ecosystem services in the decision-making and green infrastructure process, as regenerative and circular economy should be boosted and a durable agricultural policy promoted. The European official said the EU would make effective progress in the environmental field through the line ministers’ cooperation. The debates also approached biodiversity, the discussions highlighting the importance of integrating biodiversity targets within the relevant sectoral policies and strategies.



    Brexit – The British government approved PM Theresa May’s plan on Brexit, including the compromise measures that are to be included in the law that is to be voted on early next month. The draft law includes the idea of a temporary customs union until future general elections are held as well as measures to guarantee EU workers’ rights and to protect the environment. The passing of the Brexit law by the House of Commons is an almost impossible mission for the government, even though the measures proposed might persuade some of the Labour MPs to vote for it, newspapers write. Jeremy Corbyn pointed out he was opposed to the government’s proposal, considering it is not different from the previous one that has been already rejected 3 times so far. Also the euro skeptic Conservatives announced they would vote against it. The government also discussed preparations for a no-deal Brexit, which, at least for the moment, is still the version provided by the British legislation, unless a deal is reached by October 31.



    Kiev — Romania’s deputy Prime Minister Ana BIrchall on Monday participated in Kiev in the swearing-in ceremony of Ukraine’s president elect, Volodimir Zelenski. According to a government communiqué, Ana Birchall had a bilateral meeting with the Ukrainian official during which she reiterated Romania’s firm support for the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine within its internationally-recognized borders. Strengthening security in the Black Sea region is a common objective, the Romanian official added. She approached the issue of the rights of the Romanian minority in Ukraine, highlighting the role of minorities as bridges between the two countries. Almost 500 thousand ethnic Romanians live in Ukraine, mostly on the Romanian territories annexed in 1940 by the former USSR and taken over in 1991 by Ukraine as a successor state. (translation by L. Simion)

  • May 15, 2019

    May 15, 2019

    GROWTH In the first quarter of 2019
    Hungary, Romania and Poland saw the most significant economic growth in the
    European Union as compared to the similar period last year, the European Office
    for Statistics has announced. According to the same sources, Hungary reported
    the most significant growth, 5.2%, followed by Romania with 5.1 and Poland,
    4.6. In the first quarter of 2019 Romania’s economy saw a 5% growth against the
    same period last year, says the country’s Statistics Institute in its report
    published on Wednesday. The country’s GDP rose by 1.3% in the first quarter of
    the year and the government counts on an economic growth of 5.5% this year. Last
    week, the European Commission revised Romania’s economic growth this year down
    to 3.3% from a previous 3.8%. The IMF forecast also went down to 3.1% from an
    earlier 3.4.












    GRATITUDE 30 years on from the anti-communist revolution in Romania, the
    country’s president, Klaus Iohannis, has announced that 2019 will be declared ‘The
    Year of Gratitude’. A ceremony to honor the victims of the communist
    dictatorship is due to be held on May 20th, which was the date when thirty
    years ago the post-communist country saw its first free elections.










    PROTESTS Trade unionists from Romania’s
    penitentiary system have today continued the series of protests they kicked off
    on Monday, when protest actions were held at the penitentiaries of Rahova close
    to Bucharest and Aiud in central Romania. Protesters are calling for the
    endorsement of the penitentiary policeman status and the pay of the extra hours
    worked. Trade unionists have announced they are going to stage more protests
    every Monday, Wednesday and Friday until their requirements are met. The
    country’s interim justice minister Ana Birchall on Monday and Tuesday held
    talks with the protesters in a bid to find a solution to their problems.








    MEETING On Tuesday and Wednesday
    Bucharest is seeing the seventh meeting of education ministers from Asia and
    Europe (ASEM), an event part of the series of meetings and conferences staged
    during Romania’s holding the EU rotating presidency. The meeting this year is focusing
    on the type of education that connects: inclusion, mobility and excellence in
    support of sustainable development objectives’. A major issue on the talks
    agenda is the manner in which the ASEM Educational Process is contributing to
    sustainable development. ASEM is a cooperation platform between Europe and Asia
    launched in 1996 with a view to consolidating dialogue between the two regions.
    ASEM currently has 53 partners: 51 countries (28 EU members plus Switzerland
    and Norway, 21 Asian countries as well as two international organizations, the
    EU and the ASEAN secretariat, which brings together nations from South-East
    Asia.












    TENNIS The world’s number two tennis player Simona
    Halep of Romania will today be playing Marketa Vondrousova of the Czech
    Republic in the second round of the WTA tournament in Rome. Also today, in the
    same round of the competition, another Romanian, Mihaela Buzarnescu, will be up
    against Jelena Goerges of Germany. Yesterday in the competition’s first round Buzarnescu
    played Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia who withdrew from the match when the score
    was 6-2, 5-4 to Buzarnescu. The Romanian-Dutch pair made up of Horia Tecau and
    Jean Julien Rojer was outperformed by all-American pair Bob and Mike Bryan, 6-4,
    7-6 in the ATP Masters 1000 tournament in Rome. We recall the Dutch-Romanian
    pair on Sunday won the finals of the tournament in Madrid.




    (translated by bill)

  • April 30, 2019

    April 30, 2019

    ELECTIONS – The campaign for European Parliament elections, scheduled for May 26, continues in Romania. 13 political groups are in the running: governing ruling coalition members Social Democrats and the Alliance Liberals and Democrats and the Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania, which has a collaboration protocol with the coalition. From the parliamentary and non-parliamentary opposition, in the running are the National Liberal Party, the USR-PLUS Alliance, the National Popular Party, Pro Romania, a Social Democratic splinter. From outside Parliament, in the running are the UNPR, the National Unity Bloc, and the United Romania, PRODEMO, the Romanian Socialist, and the Independent Social Democratic parties. Three independents have also declared their candidacy. Romania will send 33 EuroMPs to Parliament. The 33rd MP can only take office after the Brexit comes into effect. Romanians abroad can go to 441 polling stations, most of them in Italy, Spain, and neighboring Moldova. On that same day, Romanians are called to vote in a justice referendum called by President Klaus Iohannis.



    JUSTICE — Deputy Prime Minister and interim Minister of Justice Ana Birchall suspended on Monday the procedures to select a new General Prosecutor in Romania, as well as that for selecting the deputy prosecutor with Eurojust, the agency dealing with criminal cooperation between EU member states. She said that the procedures will resume soon. On April 10, the Justice Minister announced new procedures for selecting the General Prosecutor, after Minister Toader turned down all four candidates. According to the law, the minister forwards proposals for general prosecutors, which have to be approved by the Superior Council of Magistracy, and by President Iohannis.



    PONTIFF – Hundreds of thousands of Romanians have registered on-line to attend the masses that Pope Francis will officiate in the country. They will be joined by faithful from neighboring Hungary, Serbia, and Ukraine. Also, they are joined by pilgrims from remote countries, such as Pakistan, Rwanda, South Africa, Niger, Madagascar, Australia, Israel, Canada, Namibia, and Reunion. Pope Francis will go on a three day apostolic circuit, starting on May 31. He was invited to the country by President Klaus Iohannis and the local Catholic Church. The Pontiff will visit Iasi, a major city with a significant Roman Catholic population, and Blaj, the spiritual capital of Romanian Greek Catholics. While there, the Pope will beatify seven bishops killed in Communist political prisons. He will also consecrate the Franciscan shrine in Sumuleu Ciuc, a majority Hungarian locality. In 1999, Romania was the first majority Orthodox country in history to be visited by a Pontiff, Pope John Paul II.



    HOLIDAY – Many Romanians continue their mini-holiday between Easter celebrations and the May Day holiday. The Christian faithful continue Easter celebrations, in their third day. At the Romanian seaside, 250 police officers have been mobilized. Dozens of regional transportation police are keeping watch in railway stations in Constanta County, where most resorts are. According to the Border Police, over 195,000 Romanian and foreign citizens have crossed the border in the last 24 hours, using around 48,000 vehicles.



    TENNIS — Romanian tennis player Ana Bogdan, 132nd seeded, qualified in the eighth finals in the WTA tournament in Rabat, Morocco, with a quarter million dollar total prize money, after defeating French player Alize Cornet, 54th seeded, 6-3, 6-3. This is her most important victory this year, and she moves on to play British Johanna Konta, 47th seeded, and Chinese Yafan Wang, 56th seeded. Ana Bogdan is also scheduled to play in the doubles in Rabat, alongside Bulgarian Isabela Shinikova, facing off against the Romanian/ Swiss pair Andreea Mitu/ Timea Bacsinszky.



    LIGHTING — Exactly 162 years ago, Bucharest introduced public lighting using kerosene lamps. On 30 April, 1857, the Romanian capital became the first city in the world with such lighting. According to historians, the kerosene was made in the first industrial refinery, the Gas Factory in Ploiesti. 14 years later, in 1871, Bucharest had over 785 kerosene lamps. In early 20th century, the city had over 3,000 kerosene lamps, 990 mineral oil lamps, 400 natural gas lamps, and 200 electric lamps.

  • March 17, 2019

    March 17, 2019

    Meeting – Bucharest is hosting, on Sunday and Monday, a ministerial meeting dwelling on Diaspora policies. The meeting is organized by the Romanian presidency of the Council of the EU and is taking place in the context of the free movement of labor force and of debates on migration and integration. The Romanian authorities believe that the exchange of good practices, the presentation of and consultation on the national strategies regarding the Diaspora could be useful instruments at both European and national level. The talks will focus on ways through which the European countries could establish relations of economic and cultural cooperation with the Diaspora, the initiatives for supporting its linguistic and cultural development, the policies that contributed to the rapid integration of the Diaspora community members as well as the policies meant to support the return of the members of the Diaspora to the countries of origin.



    Baku — The Vice Prime Minister for Romanias Strategic Partnerships Implementation Ana Birchall represented Romania at the 7th edition of the Global Forum hosted by Baku, Azerbaijan. On the sidelines of the forum the Romanian official met with Azeri high officials among whom President Ilham Aliyev. In the message delivered on behalf of the PM Viorica Dancila, the Vice Prime Minister Ana Birchall underlined the importance of the Baku Forum that has become an extremely useful platform of debates from the point of view of existing challenges at European and international levels. Ana Birchall has pointed out that the Republic of Azerbaijan is a valuable strategic partner of Romania and one of the most important economic partners in the region. During the talks with President Ilham Aliyev the Romanian official highlighted the importance of boosting economic cooperation, focusing on the existing opportunities at regional level in the field of transports, including from the perspective of implementing the project of the Black Sea — Caspian Sea goods transport corridor. The working visit to Baku was also an occasion to mark 10 years of Strategic Partnership between Romania and Azerbaijan. A Romanian language center was also inaugurated on the occasion at the Linguistics University in Baku.



    Tennis — The Romanian-born Canadian tennis player Bianca Andreescu, 18, is taking on today the German Angelique Kerber in the finals of the WTA Indian Wells tournament, in California, USA. The tournament has prizes up for grabs worth 9 million dollars. Bianca Andreescu, the revelation of the season debut, defeated, in the semifinals, the Ukrainian Elina Svitolina, world’s no.6 player. Bianca Andreescu, 60th in the WTA ranking, might win the first title of her career at one of the most important WTA tournaments. She started the year 2019 on 152nd position in the world rankings, and in the Indian Wells semifinals she obtained the 27th win in this season, more than any other player.



    Bratislava — Liberal Zuzana Caputova, the candidate of the Progressive Slovakia party won the first round of the presidential election in Slovakia, held on Saturday. She got almost 40% of the votes cast, as shown by the partial results announced on Sunday by the statistical office after the counting of 50% of the votes. Coming second is Maros Sefcovic, vice-president of the European Commission, who is supported by the populist, leftist governing party Smer-SD. Sefcovic obtained almost 19% of the votes. A lawyer, Caputova stood out thanks to her criticism leveled against the Slovak government and for supporting the environmental issues. The second round of the presidential election is scheduled for March 30. If she wins, Caputova will become the first woman president of Slovakia.



    Marathon — Romanian Avram Iancu, a librarian, ended on 3rd place the ‘6633 Arctic Ultra’ North Pole marathon, which is considered one of the toughest competitions of the world, as temperatures are very low and the route measures 617 kms. Avram Inacu participated in the marathon for the 2nd time after, last year, he had to abandon the race after only one day due to strong pain in his right leg. (translation by L. Simion)

  • Nachrichten 02.06.2017

    Nachrichten 02.06.2017

    Die opositionelle Union Rettet Rumänien (USR) wird einen neuen Wahlkongress abhalten. Gründer und Chef Nicuşor Dan war am Donnerstag ausgetreten, die Interims-Führung der Partei übernahm der Chef der Filiale Cluj Elek Levente, der beim Kongress im vergangenen Monat die meisten Stimmen hinter Nicuşor Dan erhalten hatte. Dan war ausgetreten, weil sich die USR eindeutig gegen ein Referendum zur Schwulenehe positionierte, er aber Neutralität wollte. Drei Millionen Rumänen hatten in einer Unterschriftenaktion die Abänderung der Verfassung und die Definierung der Ehe als Verbindung von Mann und Frau anstatt wie im Moment zwischen Ehepartnern gefordert.



    Der Klimawandel sei ein dringendes globales Problem und die globalen Ansätze des Pariser Abkommens seien nicht von der Hand zu weisen – das sagte am Freitag Medeea Marinescu, die rumänische Botschafterin für das Klimaabkommen. Die rumänische Greenpeacefiliale teilte ihrerseits mit, dass die Initiative der USA, sich aus dem Abkommen zurückzuziehen, zu verurteilen sei. US-Präsident Donald Trump begründete die Entscheidung mit negativen Konsequenzen des Abkommens für die amerikanische Wirtschaft.



    Der rumänische Staatspräsident Klaus Iohannis unternimmt einen Arbeitsbesuch in den Vereinigten Staaten. Am 9. Juni wird Präsident Iohannis mit US-Präsident Donald Trump zusammenkommen, meldete die Bukarester Präsidialverwaltung. Der Sprecher des Weißen Hauses, Sean Spicer, bestätigte offiziell das Treffen und sagte, Präsident Trump warte mit Interesse darauf, über die Vertiefung der Beziehungen zwischen den USA und Rumänien und über die Verstärkung der strategischen Partnerschaft der zwei Staaten zu diskutieren. In einem Facebook-Beitrag präzisierte Präsident Iohannis seinerseits, das Treffen mit Donald Trump werde das feste Engagement Rumäniens als vertrauenswürdiger Partner der Vereinigten Staaten bestätigen. Während seines USA-Besuches wird Präsident Iohannis Ehrengast beim Globalen Forum der einflussreichen Organisation American Jewish Committee; dabei wird Klaus Iohannis die Auszeichnung Light Unto the Nations erhalten. Diese höchste Auszeichnung des American Jewish Committee, wird an Staats- und Regierungschefs als Anerkennung für den wichtigen internationalen Beitrag zur Förderung des Friedens, der Sicherheit, der Demokratie und der menschlichen Werte verliehen. Im Rahmen seines USA-Besuches wird Klaus Iohannis auch mit Vertretern der rumänischen Gemeinden in den Vereinigten Staaten zusammentreffen.



    Nach Angaben der delegierte Europaministerin Rumäniens Ana Birchall führe das Land einen konstruktiven Dialog mit der Europäischen Kommission für eine gute Vorbereitung der EU-Ratspräsidentschaft in der ersten Hälfte von 2019 . Birchall diskutierte in Brüssel mit dem stellvertretenden Generalsekretär der Europäischen Kommission Jean-Eric Paquet und nannte die EU-Ratspräsidentschaft eine Priorität. Rumänien sei seit 10 Jahren EU-Mitglied und reif, eine große Herausforderung zu einer Chance zu machen, sagte die Ministerin.



    Die Moldau habe nach Angaben ihres prorussischen Präsidenten Igor Dodon andere Werte als die der westlichen Länder. Die ehemalige Sowjetrepublik kehre wieder zu einer strategischen Partnerschaft mit Russland zurück, sagte Dodon auf dem Wirtschaftsforum in Sankt Petersburg. Nach acht Jahren proeuropäischer und deutlich antirussischer Politik sei die Moldau dabei, nach den letzten Präsidialwahlen vom letzten Jahr die Situation zu korrigieren, so Dodon. Ein Beitritt stehe in der jetzigen Form der EU außer Frage; nach dem Referendum für den Austritt Großbritanniens seien die Vorteile einer Mitgliedschaft fragwürdig, sagte der moldauische Präsident.



    Rund 200 Spiel- und Kurzfilme stehen auf dem Programm des 16. Internationalen Filmfestivals Transilvania TIFF 2017 in Klausenburg. Rund 1200 ausländische und rumänische Gäste sollen anlässlich dieser wichtigsten rumänischen Filmfestspiele an Filmaufführungen, Konzerten, Werkstätten, Debatten und Premieren teilnehmen. Die rumänische Schauspielerin Tora Vasilescu wird beim Filmfest mit dem Exzellenzpreis ausgezeichnet. Ehrengast ist der französische Schauspieler Alain Delon, der zu diesem Anlass das erste Mal Rumänien besucht.


  • May 22, 2017

    May 22, 2017

    SALARIES — The Unified Pay Scale bill, which provides for raising state employee salaries gradually until 2022 is put to a vote today in the Senate in Bucharest. The Senate labor committee passed a number of amendments, among them raising by 25% the indemnities of local elected officials working on projects financed with European funds, and granting a 15% bonus to public servants in decentralized services under the Ministry of the Environment. The Unified Pay Scale bill raises state budget wages across the board. Stay tuned for details after the news.



    INVESTIGATION — The parliamentary committee appointed to investigate the 2009 presidential elections starts hearings today with journalist and former political adviser Dan Andronic. Over the next few days, the committee hears former Minister of the Interior Vasile Blaga, former chairman of the Permanent Election Authority, Maria Patru, and Mircea Geoana, who ran in the 2009 elections. Recently, Dan Andronic alleged that the heads of major state institutions, such as the director of intelligence and the head prosecutor, had tampered with the elections in favor of the then incumbent president and candidate Traian Basescu. He won a second term in office with a narrow margin, running against Mircea Geoana. Prosecutors are already investigating the case for abuse of office, as well as forging documents and electoral records. The report of the parliament committee could get to the joint chambers by the end of this legislative season, which concludes on July 1st.



    BRUSSELS — Romanian Delegate Minister for European Affairs, Ana Birchall, takes part in Brussels in the General Affairs Council Meeting, gathering 27 countries, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The ministers of the 27 gather to pass the authorization to open negotiations for the Brexit, the UK leaving the European Union. During her trip, Minister Birchall will hold talks with her Estonian counterpart, Matti Maasikas, on the priorities of the Estonian presidency of the European Council, and the main issues under debate at the European level. The minister pointed to Romanias intense interest in protecting the rights and interests of Romanians living and working in the UK.



    TRUMP — US President Donald Trump arrives today in Israel, the second leg of his first international tour as head of state, the first being Saudi Arabia. He will hold talks in Jerusalem with President Reuven Rivlin, PM Benjamin Netanyahu, and other Israeli leaders. On Tuesday, he goes to Bethlehem, where he meets Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas. In Saudi Arabia, a major US ally, Trump signed contracts worth 380 billion USD, mainly for armament and oil sales. In Riyadh, speaking to representatives of over 40 Muslim states, he called on leaders there to take the initiative in fighting Islamist militants. The tour will continue with Italy and Belgium.



    TENNIS — Five Romanian tennis players attend the tournament in Roland Garros, the second Grand Slam of the year, with 36 million Euro in prizes. According to betting houses, Simona Halep, currently ranking fourth in the world, is among the favorites to win. On Sunday, she lost the finals of the tournament in Rome against 11th seeded Elina Svitolina of Ukraine. The four other Romanian contenders in the current competition are Irina Begu, 44th, Monica Niculescu (53 WTA), Sorana Cîrstea (67 WTA) and Patricia Ţig (119 WTA). The first day of the tournament is Sunday.



    HANDBALL — Romanian mens handball team Potaissa Turda was defeated on Sunday in an away game by Sporting Lisbon, 37-28, in the first leg of the finals of the Challenge Cup. The return leg is scheduled for May 27 in Cluj-Napoca. In womens handball, Romanian champions CSM Bucharest came in third in the Champions Leagu Final Four, the most important European competition. In 2016, CSM won the Champions League in their very first year of attendance.



    DRUGS — The Bulgarian authorities, working with Romanian authorities, have captured over 400 kg of heroin at the Vidin-Calafat crossing point between the two countries. The black market value of the transport is over 32 million Euros. The heroin was found in a truck transporting construction materials, transiting between Iran and Holland.


  • 21.05.2017 (mise à jour)

    21.05.2017 (mise à jour)

    UE – La Ministre roumaine déléguée aux affaires européennes, Ana Birchall participera lundi à Bruxelles à la réunion du Conseil des Affaires générales à 27, fait savoir le ministère des Affaires Etrangères de Bucarest. Les ministres approuveront la décision du Conseil relative aux négociations sur un accord avec le Rouaume Uni qui établit les conditions de sortie de ce pays de l’UE. En marge de cette réunion, la ministre roumaine rencontrera son homologue estonien Matti Maasikas au sujet des priorités de la présidence estonienne du Conseil de l’UE et sur les principaux dossiers à l’agenda européen. Ana Birchall a également rappelé que pour Bucarest il était extrêmement important de protéger les droits et les intérêts des Roumains vivant au Royaume-Uni.

    Salaires – Le projet de la Loi de la grille unique des salaires qui prévoit de majorer les revenus dans le secteur par étapes jusqu’en 2022, sera examiné lundi par le plénum du Sénat de Bucarest. Auparavant, la commission en charge de l’emploi du Sénat a admis une série d’amendements, dont la majoration de 25% des indemnités des élus locaux qui appliquent des projets au financement européen et un bonus de 15% accordé aux fonctionnaires publics des services appartenant au Ministère de l’environnement. Le projet de la grille unique des salaires, contient des majorations de salaires, allant jusqu’à 200% dans toutes les domaines d’activité du secteur public.

    Enquête – La commission parlementaire en charge de l’enquête sur les élections présidentielles de 2009 démarre ce lundi les auditions avec le journaliste et ex-consultant politique Dan Andronic. Celui-ci vient de déclarer que les chefs d’importantes institutions de l’Etat de l’époque, parmi lesquelles le Service roumain de renseignements et le Parquet général auraient influencé le résultat du vote au bénéfice de Traian Basescu. Rappelons-le, celui-ci avait remporté en 2009, un deuxième mandat présidentiel, après une victoire à la limite contre Mircea Geoana. Dans ce dossier, les procureurs ont démarré une poursuite pénale contre X, c’est-à-dire pour des faits et non pas contre une certaine personne pour des infractions d’abus de fonction et de falsification des documents et des justificatifs électoraux.

    Tennis – La joueuse roumaine de tennis, Simona Halep, no 4 mondiale a perdu ce dimanche la finale du tournoi de Rome. Dans la dernière étape de la compétition, Halep a été vaincue par Elina Svitolina d’Ukraine, no 11 mondiale. C’était la 24e finale de la carrière de Simona Halep qui s’est adjugée jusqu’ici 15 tournois. Rappelons-le, la semaine dernière, la Roumaine a remporté le tournoi de Madrid pour la deuxième année consécutive.

    Foot – Dinamo Bucarest a remporté la Coupe de la Ligue de foot, après la victoire de samedi soir 2 buts à 0 contre le ACS Poli Timisoara de l’ouest du pays. Le match s’est déroulé dans la capitale. C’est la deuxième compétition organisée par la Ligue professionnelle de foot de Roumanie après la Championnat. Cette année, la Ligue professionnelle de foot a accordé le titre de champion de Roumanie au club de FC Viitorul, dans le sud-est du pays. Le FCSB, ex-Steaua Bucarest a menacé de contester cette décision au Tribunal d’arbitrage sportif de Suisse, au cas où cette décision est validée par la Fédération Roumaine de Football. En effet, les deux clubs ont terminé à égalité. Pourtant Steaua réclame le titre en raison de ses résultats meilleurs dans les quatre matchs directs. La ligue professionnelle de foot affirme pourtant que Viitorul est championne de Roumanie parce que ce club a eu des résultats meilleurs dans les deux matchs directs des play-offs, soit la deuxième phase de la compétition. La Coupe de Roumanie se joue entre le Fc Voluntari et l’Astra Giurgiu.

  • April 24, 2017

    April 24, 2017

    SENTENCE — The Supreme Court in Bucharest today will issue a definitive ruling on the two year suspended prison sentence issued against the leader of the Social Democratic Party, Liviu Dragnea. The latter attacked the sentence on technical issues, such as the fact that the decision was not issued within 30 days at the latest from the pronouncement, and that the head justice who presided over the court was no longer a judge at the time, as he had retired. The Social Democratic chair got condemned in April 2016 for rigging the 2012 referendum to impeach then Romanian president Traian Basescu. At the same time, Dragnea said yesterday that he did not rule out setting up a Parliament committee to investigate the 2012 referendum, which was declared null and void for a lack of quorum. A similar committee was set up to investigate the 2009 presidential elections, after claims of fraud appeared in the public space.



    PARIS — The leader of the French center movement En Marche!, Emmanuel Macron, won Sundays first round of presidential elections in France with 23.75% of the ballot. On May 7th, he faces off against the extreme right National Front leader Marine LePen, who gathered 21.5% of votes. The defeated candidates of the traditional right and left announced they support Macron. During the campaign, the latter stood out by running on mostly economic matters, such as corporate tax cuts, flexibility on the duration of the work week, reducing unemployment, investing in vocational conversion, support for renewable energy and modernizing infrastructure. This first round of elections was held under the shadow of increased security measures against fears of terrorism. In spite of that, presence at the polls was almost 80%.



    MOSCOW — The head of European diplomacy Federica Mogherini is today in Moscow for the first time in her term, which began in 2014. She will be talking with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. The visit comes against deteriorating relations between Russia and the EU, after the former annexed Crimea and fomented conflicts in eastern Ukraine in 2014. Brussels slapped tough sanctions on Moscow for its alleged support for pro-Russian rebels in the east of neighboring Ukraine. On Friday, commenting on the visit, Minister Lavrov said that continued sanctions against Russia were the main reason for the difficulties in Russias relationship with the EU. Also mentioned were supposed Russophobia in the EU, as well as what were called unfounded accusations that Russia is trying to destabilize the Union and influence elections in certain member states.



    MCV — In Bucharest, Justice Minister Tudorel Toader, Prosecutor General Augustin Lazar, head of anti-corruption Laura Codruta Kovesi, and European Affairs Minister Ana Birchall, are discussing with European experts the evaluation mission as part of the Mechanism of Cooperation and Verification. The Justice Minister will issue a progress report aggregating data provided by all institutions under monitoring by the Mechanism, in preparation for the evaluation mission of May 2017. The Mechanism has been put in place right after Romania joined the EU alongside Bulgaria in 2007, in order to rectify issues with the judicial system and corruption in both countries. The latest reports in those areas have been largely positive with regard to Romania. EC First Vice President, Frans Timmermans, came to Bucharest last week to talk to PM Sorin Grindeanu and Minister of Justice Tudorel Toader. After the meetings, he said that Brussels would not hesitate to acknowledge any progress made by the country under the requirements of the Mechanism of Cooperation and Verification.



    SALARIES — The unified pay scale bill will be introduced officially in Parliament today. The announcement was made by Social Democratic chair Liviu Dragnea, leading the main ruling coalition party. He said that so far a few dozen amendments have been proposed in the two weeks that the bill has been posted on his partys website. The government promised that the bill, if passed, would come into effect on July 1st, and hopes that it would pass in a speedy manner. The opposition has criticized the bill, accusing the Social Democrats of passing the buck to a future government on raising state employee wages.

  • February 13, 2017

    February 13, 2017

    REFERENDUM — The Parliament in Bucharest is scheduled today to meet for deciding whether or not to endorse President Klaus Iohannis initiative to run a referendum on the fight against corruption. Expert committees have already met with approval this initiative, which the head of state proposed after the government attempted to operate changes in the criminal code. On January 24, the President initiated the procedure for referendum, and Parliament had 20 days to endorse it, without the decision being binding.



    JUDICIARY — Romanian interim Justice Minister Ana Birchall has her first meeting today with representatives of the Higher Defense Council, the Anti-Corruption Directorate and the department fighting organized crime, seeking solutions in the fight against corruption. The position of justice minister was vacated last week by Florin Iordache, in the aftermath of widespread public outrage at proposed changes to the criminal code. In spite of the fact that the executive order operating the changes has been withdrawn, protests continued on Sunday in Bucharest for the 13th day, as well as in other cities. Stay tuned for more after the news.



    NATO — 500 US troops are deploying to the Mihail Kogalniceanu airbase in south eastern Romania. They are arriving from Poland, and bring the necessary equipment for running military exercises with the Romanian military. They are part of the 3rd Armored Brigade, headquartered in Fort Carson, Colorado. This move is meant to strengthen NATOs eastern flank, and is part of Atlantic Resolve, a series of multinational military exercises.



    RADIO – Today is World Radio Day, celebrating the most accessible means of information, education and entertainment. This celebration was introduced by UNESCO in 2011 upon Spains proposal in order to draw attention to this medium. This year, the central event in celebration of this day takes place in Shanghai, China. In Romania, the first radio broadcast went on the air on 1 November, 1928.



    TENNIS — Romanian tennis star Simona Halep this week held on to her position as fourth in the world. According to the WTA, Romania has three other players in the top 100 standings, Irina Begu, 28th seeded, Monica Niculescu, 39th seeded, and Sorana Carstea, 62nd seeded. Late last week, Romanias Fed Cup team, which did not include Simona Halep, sidelined by an injury, was defeated by Belgium in Bucharest 3-1. The Fed Cup is the womens version of the Davis Cup.



    FUNDS– Romania has lost a total of 3.2 billion Euro in European funds for 2007-2013, according to official data published by Bucharest. The highest amounts were lost through the Transportation Sector Operational Program, 973 million Euro, followed by the environmental program, with 946 million lost, and the human resources program, over 850 million. The authorities have increased the rate of absorption of European funds for the 2007-2013 period, bringing the total to 18.8 billion Euro.

  • February 11, 2017

    February 11, 2017

    JUSTICE — The interim justice minister, Ana Birchall, announced she would have a first meeting on Monday with the representatives of the Superior Council of Magistracy, the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA) and the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) as well as with all the bodies with expertise in the field of the judiciary. The purpose of the meeting is to work out the best solutions to fight corruption and defend fundamental human rights. Ana Birchall said she had no hidden agenda and that she was open to any solutions but the final decisions will be made by Parliament though. Ana Birchall took over the justice minister seat after Florin Iordache resigned against the backdrop of large-scale street protests caused by the adoption of an emergency government decree on the modification of the criminal codes. Although the decree was subsequently repealed and justice minister Iordache resigned, protests against the government coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats continued in Bucharest and other cities across Romania. In another move, protests were also staged to support the government and to blame the way President Iohannis played his role of mediator among state institutions.



    MOLDOVA — The Moldovan Government is not willing to take responsibility for the debt amounting to almost 6 billion dollars accumulated by the separatist region of Transdniester for the purchase of Russian gas. The statement was made by the Moldovan PM Pavel Filip at a meeting with the vice-president of Gazprom, Valeri Golubev. Recently the pro-Russian Socialist president of Moldova, Igor Dodon, had given assurances to Moscow that the debt would be paid by Moldova. Transdniester de facto went out of the control of Moldovan authorities in the early 1990s and has since been supported financially by Russia which deployed units of the 14th Army on its territory. Given that the independence of Transdniester is not recognized, Moscow believes that the Republic of Moldova should pay for the gas Russia delivers to that region on credit.



    FED CUP — Romania’s Fed Cup team is meeting Belgium this weekend in Bucharest in the first round of World Group II. The first two singles are scheduled for Saturday with Monica Niculescu (36 WTA) playing against Kirsten Flipkens (74 WTA) and Sorana Cîrstea (62 WTA) facing Yanina Wickmayer (60 WTA). On Sunday, also in the singles, Nicluescu will take on Wickmayer and Cîrstea will face Flipkens. In the doubles, the pair Irina Begu (29 WTA)/Patricia Ţig (106 WTA) will be up against Elise Mertens (83 WTA)/Maryna Zanevska (123 WTA). Simona Halep (4 WTA) is not participating in this competition, which is the women’s equivalent of the Davis Cup.



    RUGBY – Romania’s national rugby team are making their debut on Saturday on the Offenbach am Main stadium against the German team, in a new season of the Rugby Europe Championship. Officially, this match marks the start of the qualifiers for the 2019 World Cup, due in Japan. As part of the Rugby Europe Championship Romania will take on the Spanish team on February 18, Russia on March 4, Belgium on March 11 and Georgia on March 19. (news translated by L. Simion)