Radio România Internațional

Tag: EC

  • January 20, 2018 UPDATE

    January 20, 2018 UPDATE


    PROTEST – Dozens of thousands of people protested again in Bucharest and other cities across Romania on Saturday evening against the changes brought to the justice laws and the recent fiscal measures adopted by the government formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats. The protest in Bucharest was attended by people from all over the country. The traffic in the area was disturbed and incidents were reported involving protesters and gendarmes. The protesters are accusing the ruling coalition in Romania of trying to subordinate the judiciary, by amending the legislation in the field. In December, several NGOs called on the Government to inform the Venice Commission about the justice laws and the changes in the criminal codes. Recently, the embassies in Bucharest of Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Holland and Sweden have called, in a joint letter, on all the parties involved in the reform of the judiciary to avoid any action that would weaken the independence of the justice system and the fight against corruption.



    AJC– Romanias President Klaus Iohannis has received in Bucharest a delegation of the American Jewish Committee (AJC), headed by President David Harris, on which occasion he stated that Bucharest authorities will continue to be extremely open to the Jewish community. In turn, David Harris has appreciated the way in which Romania acted while holding the presidency of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance, between March 2016 and March 2017, stressing in particular the remarkable results obtained in the field of Holocaust education and research. During the meeting, the two parties also discussed the Strategic Partnership between Romania and the US and the privileged ties between Romania and Israel, to the strengthening of which AJC would like to keep contributing. David Harris has also met with the Romanian interim prime-minister Mihai Fifor, who has stressed Romanias strategic role in the Black Sea area and the countrys firm commitment as a NATO member. Established in 1906, the American Jewish Committee is one of the oldest Jewish organisations in the USA, fighting against antisemitism at global level and promoting the observance of human rights.



    AIR POLLUTION– The European Commission has announced that on January 30th it will hold a ministerial meeting, involving the participation of nine member states, including Romania. The meeting will focus on the infringement procedure regarding failure to observe the agreed air pollution limits. The other member states, besides Romania, facing infringement are the Czech Republic, Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Hungary, Slovakia and the UK. In 2008, a directive was issued establishing the air quality limits that cannot be exceeded anywhere in the EU, obliging the Member States to limit the exposure of citizens to harmful air pollutants. According to the Commission, despite this directive, these limits are still being exceeded in more than 130 cities across Europe.



    BULGARIA – The German Chancellor Angela Merkel paid a visit to Sofia on Saturday, for talks with her Bulgarian counterpart Boiko Borisov on the priorities of the Bulgarian presidency of the EU. The talks focused on Bulgarias joining the Schengen agreement, the EU accession of the countries in the Western Balkans, the migration crisis and the relations with Turkey. Merkel hailed the way in which Bulgaria ensured the security of the EU borders, in particular the one with Turkey. She also appreciated the Bulgarian Prime Ministers initiative to organize an EU-Turkey summit, which would openly address all the important issues. The German chancellor has announced that Bulgarias accession to the Schengen area might start soon with air transportation.



    FARMING – Romania owns 33% of the total number of farms in the EU, but, as regards the area of land used in agriculture, the country is outranked by countries such as France or Spain, according to data made public by the National Statistics Institute. According to the institute, Romanias main problem is the fragmentation of agricultural land, which does not help farmers capitalize enough on their production. The study made by the NSI has also revealed that, in 2016, the number of farms dropped by 6% as compared to 2013, when the previous study was conducted.



    ATTACK – On Saturday, the Turkish army confirmed it launched a ground and air offensive against the YPG Kurdish militia in the Afrin region in northern Syria. To Ankara, YPG, Peoples Protection Units, is a terrorist organisation. The operation is regarded with concern by Washington, given that YPG is an ally to the US in the fight against the Islamic State. Ankara accuses YPG of being the Syrian branch of the PKK, which has been carrying out a rebellion in south-eastern Turkey for more than 30 years and is considered by Ankara and its western allies a terrorist organisation.



    AUSTRALIAN OPEN– The Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, number one in the WTA rankings, has today qualified for the next round of the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam tournament of the year, after defeating the American Lauren Davis. The match against Davis was the most dramatic in her career and also the longest, as it lasted three hours and 45 minutes. In the fourth round, Simona Halep will take on the Japanese Naomi Osaka, no. 72 in the WTA classification. Also today, the pair made up of the Romanian Sorana Carstea and the Brazilian Beatriz Haddad Maia has qualified for the last 16 of the womens doubles. Next they will play against the fourth seed Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova, of the Czech Republic. In the mens doubles, the Romanian Horia Tecau and the Dutch Jean-Julien Rojer were defeated by the Australian Sam Groth/ Lleyton Hewitt. Another Romanian player, Ana Bogdan, was eliminated in the third round by the American Madison Keys.


    (translated by Mihaela Ignatescu)


  • January 20, 2018

    January 20, 2018

    AJC – Romania’s President Klaus Iohannis has received in
    Bucharest a delegation of the American Jewish Committee (AJC), headed by President
    David Harris, on which occasion he stated that Bucharest authorities will continue
    to be extremely open to the Jewish community. In turn, David Harris has
    appreciated the way in which Romania acted while holding the presidency of the
    International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance between March 2016 and March 2017,
    stressing in particular the remarkable results obtained in the field of Holocaust education
    and research. During the meeting, the two parties also discussed the
    Strategic Partnership between Romania and the US and the privileged ties
    between Romania and Israel, to the strengthening of which AJC would like to keep
    contributing. David Harris has also met with the Romanian interim
    prime-minister Mihai Fifor, who has stressed Romania’s strategic role in the
    Black Sea area and the country’s firm commitment as a NATO member. Established
    in 1906, the American Jewish Committee is one of the oldest Jewish
    organisations in the USA, fighting against antisemitism at global level and
    promoting the observance of human rights.








    AIR POLLUTION – The European Commission has announced
    that on January 30th it will hold a ministerial meeting, involving
    the participation of nine member states, including Romania. The meeting will
    focus on the infringement procedure regarding failure to observe the agreed air
    pollution limits. The other member states, besides Romania, facing infringement are the Czech Republic,
    Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Hungary, Slovakia and the UK. In 2008, a
    directive was issued establishing the air quality limits that cannot be
    exceeded anywhere in the EU, obliging the Member States to limit the exposure
    of citizens to harmful air pollutants. According to the Commission, despite
    this directive, these limits are still being exceeded in more than 130 cities
    across Europe.










    FARMING
    – Romania owns 33% of the total number of farms in the EU, but, as regards the
    area of land used in agriculture, the country is outranked by countries such as
    France or Spain, according to data made public by the National Statistics
    Institute. According to the institute, Romania’s main problem is the
    fragmentation of agricultural land, which does not help farmers capitalize
    enough on their production. The study made by the NSI has also revealed that, in
    2016, the number of farms dropped by 6% as compared to 2013, when the previous
    study was conducted.






    AUSTRALIAN OPEN – The
    Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, number one in the WTA rankings, has today
    qualified for the next round of the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam
    tournament of the year, after defeating the American Lauren Davis. The match
    against Davis was the most dramatic in her career and also the longest, as it
    lasted three hours and 45 minutes. In the fourth round, Simona Halep will take
    on the Japanese Naomi Osaka, no. 72 in the WTA classification. Also today, the
    pair made up of the Romanian Sorana Carstea and the Brazilian Beatriz Haddad
    Maia has qualified for the last 16 of the women’s doubles. Next they will play
    against the fourth seed Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova, of the Czech
    Republic. In the men’s doubles, the Romanian Horia Tecau and the Dutch
    Jean-Julien Rojer were defeated by the Australian Sam Groth/ Lleyton Hewitt.
    Another Romanian player, Ana Bogdan, was eliminated in the third round by the
    American Madison Keys.



    (translated by Mihaela Ignatescu)

  • January 19, 2018 UPDATE

    January 19, 2018 UPDATE

    Air quality. In a final push to find solutions to address the serious problem of air pollution in the European Union, Commissioner for Environment, Karmenu Vella has invited ministers from 9 Member States to convene in Brussels on Tuesday, January 30, the European Commission announced on Friday. The 9 Member States, namely the Czech Republic, Germany, Spain, France, Italy, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia and the United Kingdom, face infringement procedures for exceeding agreed air pollution limits. The meeting gives an opportunity to Member States to prove that additional adequate steps will be taken to redress the current situation without delay and comply with European law. EU legislation on ambient air quality and cleaner air for Europe, sets air quality limits that cannot be exceeded anywhere in the EU, and obliges Member States to limit the exposure of citizens to harmful air pollutants. Despite this obligation, air quality has remained a problem in many places for a number of years. In 23 out of 28 Member States, air quality standards are still being exceeded — in total in over more than 130 cities across Europe. The 9 Member States invited to the meeting are those, which have already received a Reasoned Opinion and for which the next stage in the infringement procedure would be a referral to the Court of Justice.




    Flu. The Romanian healthcare minister Florian Bodog called on family doctors to continue to monitor the situation of flu vaccination in January, particularly in the case of people at risk, given that the flu season has begun later than last year. Florian Bodog says over 700,000 people have received their flu vaccines so far, with almost 300,000 free doses still being available. Two people have died this year because of flu, a teenager and a 69-year-old woman.




    Government. The executive committee of the Social Democratic Party, the senior partner in the ruling coalition in Romania, is to meet on Monday to form a new government. President Klaus Iohannis has accepted the proposal of the Social Democratic Party and their ruling partners, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, to task the Social Democrat MEP Viorica Dancila with the formation of a new government. The Social Democrats leader Liviu Dragnea says Parliament will meet in extraordinary session so that the new cabinet can be sworn in on the 29th of January. Early this week, the Social Democrat Prime Minister Mihai Tudose resigned after losing his partys political support. On Friday, the Minister for European Funds, Marius Nica, decided to also tender his resignation.




    Social media. 47% of enterprises in the European Union used at least one type of social media in 2017, the highest percentage being recorded in Malta, with 74%, according to Eurostat data published on Friday. 35% of Romanian enterprises used social media in 2017, more than in Poland, 27%, Latvia, 30%, and Bulgaria, 34%, and slightly less than in the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary. Across the European Union, the percentage of enterprises using social media went up from less than a third in 2013 to almost half in 2017. Eurostat notes that social networks such as Facebook and LinkedIn are the most widely used by EU enterprises.




    Australian Open. The Romanian pair Irina Begu and Monica Niculescu reached the third round in the womens doubles at the Australian Open, after a 3-set victory over the Australian pair Jessica Moore and Ellen Perez. The Romanian-Ukrainian pair Raluca Olaru and Olga Savchuk lost, however, to the all-Czech pair Lucie Safarova and Barbora Strycova. In the mens doubles, the Romanian-Dutch pair Horia Tecau and Jean-Julien Rojer are still in competition. On Saturday, Simona Halep and Ana Bogdan play in the womens singles third round. Halep, who is world no. 1 and first seed in Melbourne, faces the American player Lauren Davis, while Ana Bogdan takes on another American player, Madison Keys.




    Weather. Tens of thousands of homes, mostly in south-eastern Romania, are without electricity following a snowfall in recent days. Tens of schools have been closed in several counties in the south and east. The sea ports of Midia and Mangalia and the river port of Constanta South-Agigea and Bara Sulina have been reopened for navigation. Precipitation, mainly rain, is reported in the west, north and centre of the country, and snow in the mountains, as well as wind at high altitudes. (Translated by Elena Enache)

  • The new Romanian prime minister travels to Brussels

    The new Romanian prime minister travels to Brussels

    It’s not by chance that Romania’s new leftist Prime Minister Mihai Tudose travelled to Brussels for his first foreign trip. Given the political instability that preceded the installation of his cabinet, Tudose gave assurances during talks with European officials that Romania remains a reliable partner that will rigorously fulfil its commitments. He met the presidents of the European Council and of the European Commission, Donald Tusk and Jean-Claude Juncker respectively, the head of the European Parliament Antonio Tajani and the Commissioner for Regional Policy Corina Cretu. Talks focused on the latest economic developments and the Schengen accession, the state of the judiciary and the absorption of European funds. This final subject was particularly sensitive, given that since its entry into the European Union in 2007, Romania has not excelled in this area. Prime minister Mihai Tudose: “The good news is that a sum of 600 million euros has been unblocked this week through the famous managing authorities, and funds are beginning to be validated. It’s a first good sign.”



    The prime minister said he was seeking better collaboration between his ministers and the European officials as far as community funding is concerned: “All ministers involved in European projects are to travel to Brussels at least once a month to discuss with the Commissioners; there will be regular contacts with the Council and the Commission to make sure that what we do in Romania does not reach Brussels in a distorted way and that there are no major discrepancies between reality and perception.”



    Speaking about the economy, Tudose said Romania’s budget deficit would not exceed 3% of the GDP and that his government was no longer planning to introduce the controversial turnover tax. As for Romania’s accession to the Schengen area, he said this was technically possible, provided the political and economic issue is solved.



    Mihai Tudose: “On the subject of the Schengen accession, my interlocutors agreed that, from a technical point of view, things are almost if not completely in place, the only problems that still exist being a matter of politics and competition, because things have moved more in the direction of the economic area. We are confident, however, that we will overcome this moment.”



    The Cooperation and Verification Mechanism used by Brussels to monitor the situation of the judiciary ever since Romania entered the European Union was another important subject discussed by Prime Minister Tudose in Brussels. The president of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker said the Mechanism must be lifted by 2019, when Romania is to take over the EU rotating presidency, if the judiciary stays on its current course. Mihai Tudose has given assurances that his government will not adopt measures that have not been previously discussed with civil society, passed by Parliament and communicated to Romania’s European partners, while also complying with the rulings of the Constitutional Court in Bucharest.

  • March 15, 2017 UPDATE

    March 15, 2017 UPDATE

    BUDGET DEFICIT – The European Commission is concerned that this year Romania might have the biggest budget deficit growth within the EU, the head of the EC Representation in Romania, Angela Cristea, said on Wednesday. Upon the presentation of the “2017 Economic report for Romania she said that, despite the assurances the EU received from the Romanian government that it has no reason for concern, the budget deficit might reach 3.6% in 2017 and 3.9% next year. Mrs. Cristea explained that the 2017 budget adopted by the leftist government includes several tax cuts and measures to increase budget expenditure for salaries in the public sector and for pensions. Also Romanias economic growth is estimated at 4.4% in 2017 as compared to 3.7% in 2018. After the presentation of the EC Report, Romanian finance minister, Viorel Stefan said Romania will reach the budget deficit target of 3% of the GDP, stipulated in the Maastricht Treaty, and if sideslips appear, then the government is ready to reduce spending.



    SLAVERY – A Romanian government delegation headed by the minister for the Romanians abroad, Andreea Pastarnac, is paying, as of Wednesday, a working visit to Italy in the context of disclosures indicating cases of exploitation of Romanian citizens who are working in the regions of Sicily and Calabria. The Romanian officials will meet with the Italian local authorities, with representatives of the organizations of Romanian citizens working in Italy as well as with members of the associations involved in defending the rights of foreign workers and protecting them from abuse. Also, the Romanian Ombudsman has announced he will contact the Italian authorities while the Romanian MPs intend to send a delegation to Italy to discuss with their counterparts the situation of exploited Romanian women. As many as 7,500 women, mostly Romanian, are the victims of slavery in farms in southern Italy, according to estimates made by the Italian police. The women are victims of abuse, including threats and sexual assault, which is perpetrated with almost total impunity, shows an investigation published on Sunday by the British weekly “The Observer.



    EU – ROMANIA – The future of Europe and the absorption of European funds are the main themes to be discussed by the European Commissioner for Regional Policy, Corina Creţu, with the Romanian authorities. As of Wednesday, she is on a visit to Romania until Friday. On Wednesday the European Commissioner is meeting with the representatives of the joint European affairs committees in the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies, while Thursday she will hold talks with PM Grindeanu, the deputy PM and minister of regional development, Sevil Shhaideh, as well as with other Romanian dignitaries. Corina Cretu has said the estimates on Romania made by the commission show the absorption rate of European funds in the 2007-2013 period will exceed 90%. Commissioner Cretu has also said the EC President, Jean-Claude Juncker, might pay a visit to Romania in the first half of the year, to celebrate 10 years since Romania joined the EU.



    THE FUTURE OF THE EU – Wednesdays debate in the European Parliament on the future of the European Union has brought to light different views of the European project, which is now affected by the Brexit, the EFE news agency reports. The Presidents of the European Commission and European Council, Jean-Claude Juncker and Donald Tusk, respectively, have backed the idea of a multi-speed Europe, the alternative being, in their opinion, the EUs impossibility to advance, a vision shared by the big pro-European political groups in the European Parliament. Donald Tusk insisted that the EU should be re-born anew at the Rome Summit due on March 25, when the future of the community block might be sketched. He also said that EU reform should be based on mutual understanding, an idea also shared during the debate by Italian Prime Minister Paolo Gentiloni and Maltese deputy prime minister, Louis Grech, whose country is holding the half-yearly rotating presidency of the EU Council. In exchange, the leader of the Liberal group in the European Parliament, Guy Verhofstadt, stood for a federalised Europe, which entails a further limitation of the competences of national states in favour of EU institutions and of decisions made at EU level. In his opinion, the EU needs a European Army and a community economic government. (Translated by L. Simion and D. Vijeu)

  • February 4, 2016 UPDATE

    February 4, 2016 UPDATE

    Romania’s economic growth is to reach a peak rate of 4.2% in 2016 while in 2017 it will drop to 3.7%, show the winter economic forecasts made public on Thursday by the European Commission. In autumn the EC forecast a growth rate of 4.1% in 2016 and of 3.6% in 2017. According to estimates the engine behind economic growth remains internal demand while the net contribution of exports remains negative. Also the reduction of the VAT from 24% to 20% in January and the increase in the minimum wages in May will boost consumption and push economic growth to 4.2% in 2016. The World Bank has also improved forecasts for the Romanian economy in 2016. According to them the economic growth rate in 2016 will increase by 3.9% and up to 4.1% in 2017.



    The head of the Romanian presidential chancellery, Dan Mihalache, and Romanian Ambassador to the US, George Cristian Maior, met on Wednesday James Townsend, the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for NATO and Europe. They saluted the plan issued by the US presidency to boost fourfold the budget for defending Europe in 2017. Romanian officials believe that this is a reflection of ongoing efforts to discourage eastern threats by bolstering alliance security.



    The Romanian Defense Minister, Mihnea Motoc, takes part on Thursday and Friday in the informal meeting of defense ministers of EU countries, to discuss major points on the defense and security agenda. The Ministry of Defense in Bucharest said that the meeting would emphasize cooperation in running defense missions and operations. Taking part in the talks are also the NATO Deputy Secretary General, Alexander Vershbow, and the UN under-secretary-general for peacekeeping operations, Herve Ladsous.



    In Bucharest, the National Center for Communicable Disease Monitoring and Control announced that a 38 year-old man has died from swine flu in Bucharest. This is the first fatal swine flu case this year. The victim had not received any flu shots, and died of complications due to various other conditions. The National Health Ministry published data according to which 72 patients with flu have been confirmed within the last week alone. So far, 563,000 people have been vaccinated. Swine flu has killed over 150 people in Ukraine so far.



    The British PM, David Cameron, said Thursday in London, at the end of the international donors’ conference that the countries and organizations attending the conference pledged to contribute almost 11 billion dollars by 2020 to aid the victims of the Syrian war. The EU has pledged to contribute more than 3 billion euros in 2016 to support Syria, Jordan, Lebanon and Turkey. These are countries affected by the refugee crisis caused by the Syrian civil war. The US promised 890 million dollars worth of aid for Syria and its neighbors in 2016. Germany will provide help worth 2.3 billion euros in the next 3 years of which 1.1 billion in 2016, while Great Britain promised to contribute 1.7 billion dollars. The conference in London takes place against the backdrop of accusations made by the US and France according to which Russia and the regime in Damascus, supported by Moscow, undermine the peace process through the offensive launched in the Aleppo area in northern Syria. In another development, the negotiations in Geneva between the regime of Bashar al-Assad and the Syrian opposition, mediated by the UN envoy Staffan de Mistura, have been suspended. The opposition representatives say they will not negotiate unless the government in Damascus puts an end to bombardments in the civilian areas and releases prisoners. Started in March 2011 through peaceful manifestations against the Bashar al-Assad regime, the Syrian conflict has so far killed more than 260,000 people and has caused a major humanitarian crisis in Syria, as many as 13.5 million people having become vulnerable or forced into exodus.



    UNESCO holds Friday in Paris an international conference devoted to increasing security measures for journalists worldwide. On Thursday, in Brussels, the International Federation of Journalists published its annual report which shows that almost 2,300 journalists and media professionals have been killed since 1990 all over the world, of whom 112 in 2015 alone. After the terrorist attack on the headquarters of the satirical weekly magazine Charlie Hebdo, France has the biggest number of journalists killed in 2015, namely 10, alongside Iraq and Yemen, according to an International Federation of Journalists classification. The most devastating year for media professionals remains 2006, when 155 journalists were killed, the report shows. The most dangerous countries for practicing the profession of journalist in the past 25 years have been Iraq, the Philippines, Pakistan, Russia, Algeria, India, Somalia, Syria and Brazil. (news translated by Lacramioara Simion)

  • January 27, 2016

    January 27, 2016

    JUSTICE –The European Commission has today underlined, in the assessing report under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism, that Romania has made progress in the judicial reform. The European Commission has words of appreciation for the institutions that fight against corruption, such as the National Anti-Corruption Directorate, and is critical of Parliament for putting brakes on the fight against corruption. The legislature is also being criticized for having issued negative opinions to requests coming from the judiciary, without however motivating them. Also, the report draws attention to the nominations that are being made at the top of the judicial system, which should be made based on a transparent procedure, to consolidate the independence of the judiciary. The Vice-President of the European Commission, Frans Timmermans, said it was encouraging to see that Romania further made reforms in 2015 and underlined that efforts should be intensified, with special emphasis on the prevention of corruption and ensuring the necessary conditions for judges to accomplish their mission appropriately. The Cooperation and Verification Mechanism is a process assessing the progress made by Romania in the judicial reform, and the fight against corruption and organised crime. It will further be active in 2016.



    TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL – Romania ranks 58th in Transparency Internationals 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index. With 46 points, as compared to an average of 65.36 at EU level, Romania is among the EU member states with the lowest number of points, alongside Bulgaria, Greece and Italy. Ranking first, for the fourth year in a row, is Denmark, the country with the lowest perceived level of corruption the world over. North Korea and Somalia are at the bottom of the classification, with only 8 points. The points accumulated by a country/ territory show the perceived level of corruption on a scale from zero (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean). 168 countries have been included in Transparency Internationals 2015 Corruption Perceptions Index.



    CORRUPTION – The leadership of the Romanian Senate is today discussing the National Anti-Corruption Directorates request to start prosecution against former Deputy Prime Minister and interior minister Gabriel Oprea. He faces two charges of abuse in office and of gaining undue benefits for himself or another person during his term in office. He has reportedly used human and material resources of the Romanian Interior Ministry to illegally benefit from police escort and motorcade while holding the internal affairs portfolio.



    BAN ON SMOKING– The law banning smoking in public places in Romania observes the countrys Constitution, Romanias Constitution Court has today ruled. Thus, the court has rejected the notification on this issue submitted by several Senators from all political parties. Adopted in December, in a plenary session of the Chamber of Deputies, the law bans smoking in enclosed public places, be they at the workplace, playgrounds, healthcare units, education institutions, as well as child protection and welfare centres. At present 17 of the 28 EU member states impose a total ban on smoking in enclosed public places, on means of transportation and at the workplace.



    HEALTHCARE – Romania is affected by obsolete medical assistance structures, the European Medical Systems Index shows. Last year, Romania went up three positions and is now on the 32nd place, with only 527 out of a total of 1,000 points. In one of the most important categories, “treatment result, Romania ranked at the bottom of the classification, alongside Macedonia. Bucharest also got a low number of points for other chapters such as infantile mortality rate, abortion rate and cancer survival rate. The report, drafted by a Swedish company also shows that Romania, just like Albania and Bulgaria, have a high and costly hospitalisation rate.



    TENNIS-The pair made up of Romanian tennis player Horia Tecau and the American Coco Vandeweghe has qualified to mixed doubles semi-finals of the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam tournament of the year, after defeating the Americans Bob Bryan/ Bethanie Mattek-Sands, seeded 2nd in the competition. The Romanian-American pair will meet in the semi-finals the pair Andreja Klepac (Slovenia)/Treat Huey (the Philippines). In another move, the Czech Republic has announced that Petra Kvitova, WTAs no. 7 and best Czech tennis player will be the leader of the tennis team which will meet Romania in the first round of the Fed Cups World Group. The match is due in the Romanian western city of Cluj Napoca. Romania will not benefit from the expertise of its best player, Simona Halep, WTAs no.2, who is to have an operation on her nose.


    (Translated by Diana Vijeu)

  • November 10, 2015 UPDATE

    November 10, 2015 UPDATE

    Romania’s President, Klaus Iohannis, on Tuesday appointed Dacian Ciolos, former EU Commissioner for Agriculture in the executive led by José Manuel Barroso, as the country’s new prime minister. Ciolos, aged 46, has vowed in a brief comment at the presidential palace in Bucharest, to focus his attention and energy on putting together a team of technocrats that will seek Parliament’s approval. In his turn, President Klaus Iohannis, who held two rounds of talks with parliamentary parties prior to nominating the new PM, has said Romania needs an independent premier of high moral and professional value and has called on political parties to eliminate corrupt members and promote to public positions only competent, non-corrupted people. Dacian Ciolos comes to replace leftist Victor Ponta who quit last week amid public anger over a deadly nightclub fire.




    The death toll from the horrific fire at the Colectiv club in Bucharest on October 30th reached 49 on Tuesday. Over 70 people who suffered severe burns are still in Bucharests hospitals, some of them in critical and serious condition. 35 patients have been transferred to hospitals in 7 other countries. Doctors from Germany and France are now assessing the possibility of further transferring patients to various hospitals in Europe.




    The United States Ambassador in Bucharest, Hans Klemm said on Tuesday that the American anti-missile system at the Deveselu military base in southern Romania would be operational in the spring of 2016 and that everything was going according to the approved schedule and budget. On the occasion of a visit to the military base, Hans Klemm said that the anti-missile system was an essential element of the bilateral strategic partnership.




    A NATO delegation is in Chisinau as of Tuesday to assess the reconstruction program of the Republic of Moldovas defense capability. The program, which involves major allies such as the US and Germany, contributing both money and expertise, is run in keeping with the decisions made at last years summit, when NATO included in its own security strategy the defense capabilities of the partner countries, including the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia. The NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said back than that the Republic of Moldova would thus be helped to consolidate security against potential threats coming from Russia. The NATO delegations visit is taking place against the background of political uncertainty in Chisinau, where consultations on the formation of a new parliamentary majority continue.




    A new program with the IMF and the European Commission is quite unlikely for Romania, as elections are drawing near, the World Bank Country Economist Catalin Pauna said on Tuesday at a conference on taxation. He has stated that the World Bank estimates a 3.6% economic growth rate this year and a 3.9% growth rate in 2016. As for 2017, the estimated rate is 4.1%. According to Pauna, the inflation dynamics, affected by fiscal measures and the VAT cut of June, will be influenced next year by the reduction of the VAT from 25% to 20% in January.





  • November 10, 2015 UPDATE

    November 10, 2015 UPDATE

    Romania’s President, Klaus Iohannis, on Tuesday appointed Dacian Ciolos, former EU Commissioner for Agriculture in the executive led by José Manuel Barroso, as the country’s new prime minister. Ciolos, aged 46, has vowed in a brief comment at the presidential palace in Bucharest, to focus his attention and energy on putting together a team of technocrats that will seek Parliament’s approval. In his turn, President Klaus Iohannis, who held two rounds of talks with parliamentary parties prior to nominating the new PM, has said Romania needs an independent premier of high moral and professional value and has called on political parties to eliminate corrupt members and promote to public positions only competent, non-corrupted people. Dacian Ciolos comes to replace leftist Victor Ponta who quit last week amid public anger over a deadly nightclub fire.




    The death toll from the horrific fire at the Colectiv club in Bucharest on October 30th reached 49 on Tuesday. Over 70 people who suffered severe burns are still in Bucharests hospitals, some of them in critical and serious condition. 35 patients have been transferred to hospitals in 7 other countries. Doctors from Germany and France are now assessing the possibility of further transferring patients to various hospitals in Europe.




    The United States Ambassador in Bucharest, Hans Klemm said on Tuesday that the American anti-missile system at the Deveselu military base in southern Romania would be operational in the spring of 2016 and that everything was going according to the approved schedule and budget. On the occasion of a visit to the military base, Hans Klemm said that the anti-missile system was an essential element of the bilateral strategic partnership.




    A NATO delegation is in Chisinau as of Tuesday to assess the reconstruction program of the Republic of Moldovas defense capability. The program, which involves major allies such as the US and Germany, contributing both money and expertise, is run in keeping with the decisions made at last years summit, when NATO included in its own security strategy the defense capabilities of the partner countries, including the Republic of Moldova, Ukraine and Georgia. The NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said back than that the Republic of Moldova would thus be helped to consolidate security against potential threats coming from Russia. The NATO delegations visit is taking place against the background of political uncertainty in Chisinau, where consultations on the formation of a new parliamentary majority continue.




    A new program with the IMF and the European Commission is quite unlikely for Romania, as elections are drawing near, the World Bank Country Economist Catalin Pauna said on Tuesday at a conference on taxation. He has stated that the World Bank estimates a 3.6% economic growth rate this year and a 3.9% growth rate in 2016. As for 2017, the estimated rate is 4.1%. According to Pauna, the inflation dynamics, affected by fiscal measures and the VAT cut of June, will be influenced next year by the reduction of the VAT from 25% to 20% in January.





  • International Finances and Personal Insolvency

    International Finances and Personal Insolvency

    A joint mission of the International Monetary Fund, the European Commission and the World Bank has come to Romania for their third assessment of the 4-billion euro precautionary loan agreement, signed with Bucharest in 2013. Until February 10th the international experts will discuss with representatives of the Government, the Central Bank, business people and trade unions about the recent economic developments and the reform priorities.



    According to economic analysts, issues like a revised calendar for the listing of state-owned companies, the stage of the privatization process and a fiscal code that should stay unchanged for the following five years are also to be discussed.



    High on the meeting’s agenda is the impact of the soaring Swiss franc on the financial sector and the Romanian National Bank’s policy, as well as the recent decision of the European Central Bank to initiate an extensive quantitative easing scheme. The international lenders’ visit to Bucharest takes place against the background of efforts by the Romanian Government, Parliament, National Bank, commercial banks and people with Swiss franc loans to find solutions to the crisis generated by the Swiss currency’s historic appreciation against the Romanian leu. The over 75 thousand Romanians who have contracted loans in this currency, have found out their rates are now about 20% higher.



    Before coming to Bucharest, the IMF, European Commission and World Bank experts have voiced concern, in a letter sent to the Romanian authorities and the National Bank of Romania, at the possible conversion of hard currency loans into national currency loans, against the currency exchange rate at the time when the loans were contracted. This measure might affect the financial system’s stability, the international lenders have warned. They have also pointed out that the personal insolvency law, discussed these days in Parliament, needs to be preceded by impact studies, consultations with all parties involved and the assistance of other EU states where similar laws are in force.



    Romanian lawmakers want this bill adopted as soon as possible, for fear that people’s defaulting on their loans might turn into a social problem. Economic analysts however, say this is not the first time when IMF representatives are coming to support the banks and postpone the adoption of this bill. The first draft law on personal insolvency was tabled in 2010.