Tag: EU

  • Summit for Europe

    Summit for Europe

    European leaders met in Brussels on Thursday for an emergency summit, where they agreed on an arms plan meant to bolster defenses on the eastern flank of the Baltic and Black Seas. With the United States withdrawing its support for Ukraine amid a European campaign to support that country and to counter Russia’s expansionist tendencies, the 27 leaders of the community bloc gave the green light to a European Commission plan to strengthen defense. European leaders reiterated their support for Ukraine in Brussels and for providing security guarantees, together with the United States, in the event of a ceasefire. This week, EC President Ursula von der Leyen proposed a plan called “ReArm Europe” that could mobilize close to 800 billion Euros, of which 150 billion in the form of loans, to strengthen the continent’s defense capabilities.

     

    Several options are mentioned, including the possibility that member states significantly increase their military spending, without this being taken into account in the calculation of their deficit, limited in principle to 3% of their gross domestic product. These funds must be used to invest jointly, between at least two member states, in areas where the needs are most urgent, such as air defense, missiles, drones and anti-drone systems or even artillery systems. The EC President Ursula von der Leyen assured that with this equipment member states will be able to massively strengthen their aid to Ukraine. The Baltic states, Poland and Romania have imposed their point of view for prioritizing the eastern flank within the framework of projects with European funding worth 150 billion Euros. The details of this plan will be finalized together with the NATO teams.

     

    Attending the summit in Brussels, Romania’s interim president Ilie Bolojan said: “Certainly, a good part of this equipment, of these investments will be located in this area, and the production part, the consortium part, will be distributed throughout the European Union. And I think this is an opportunity for our defense industry as well, for part of these products to be made in factories in Romania, thus creating jobs”.

     

    Bucharest will not send troops to Ukraine, but it could become a regional military center, for organization and support for troops sent by other states. Romania’s presence will be necessary to know whether there will be elements related to the use of our country’s infrastructure, military bases, for example, on Romanian territory or elements of other military infrastructure such as ports and airports, Ilie Bolojan also said. (LS)

  • March 7, 2025

    March 7, 2025

    EU The European Union has put together an arms plan agreed on Thursday evening by the leaders of the member states. The plan will prioritise strengthening defence on the eastern flank, from the Baltic Sea to the Black Sea, to withstand Russia’s expansionist tendencies. European leaders have once again expressed their support for Ukraine and for providing security guarantees, together with the United States, if a ceasefire is agreed. Member states will have a fund of EUR 150 billion available for defence spending. The priorities are air and missile defence systems, artillery, high-precision strike systems, drones and anti-drone systems, various types of ammunition and AI technology. The Baltic states, Poland and Romania have garnered support for their view of prioritising the eastern flank in terms of EU-funded projects.

     

    TREASON The Bucharest Court of Appeals last night ordered that 2 members of the so-called “Vlad Ţepeş” Command be placed under pre-trial arrest. They are charged with treason and ties to Russian agents. Four other members of the organisation are under court supervision for a period of 60 days. Radu Theodoru, a retired major general, aged 101, is also being investigated as a suspect in the case. According to the Directorate Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism Offences, the group aimed to replace the constitutional order and pull Romania out of NATO.

     

    ELECTIONS The non-affiliated mayor of Bucharest, Nicuşor Dan, has today submitted his candidacy and list of support signatures for the presidential elections in May to the Central Electoral Bureau. The independent candidate Călin Georgescu, backed in the presidential race by AUR and POT parties (in opposition), will also register his candidacy today. On Sunday, the former Liberal leader Crin Antonescu, backed by the ruling coalition’s electoral alliance, “Romania Forward”, is expected to arrive at the BEC headquarters. Another competitor is the former Social-Democratic prime minister Victor Ponta, who announced that he will run as an independent and that he will register his candidacy next week. Prospective presidential candidates have one week left to register with the Central Electoral Bureau (BEC), as the registration deadline is March 15. Candidates must submit lists with at least 200,000 supporter signatures.

     

    ECONOMY Romania’s economy grew by 0.9% last year, and in the last quarter of 2024 the GDP rose by 0.7% compared to the corresponding quarter of 2023 and by 0.8% compared to the third quarter of 2024, according to unaudited data released on Friday by the National Statistics Institute (INS). The 2.9% drop in net exports, a result of the 3.6% decrease in exports of goods and services concurrently with a 3.4% increase in imports, had a negative impact on GDP growth.

     

    PROTEST Trade unionists at the Damen Shipyard, operated by a Dutch company in the south-eastern Romanian town of Mangalia, jointly with employees who have been laid off or idled, today picketed the Dutch Embassy and the headquarters of the administrator in Bucharest. The announcement was made by the “Navalistul” Union, which said in a statement that the action aims to warn against the major crisis the shipyard is facing. According to the source, there is a risk that the shipyard will be closed, which will affect the entire local community.

     

    SPORTS Romania’s champions CS Dinamo Bucharest defeated the Danish side Fredericia HK, 37-32 on Thursday evening in Odense in its last match in Group A of the men’s handball Champions League. Dinamo, which had already qualified for the play-offs, finished the group in fifth place and will face the German team SC Magdeburg in their effort to qualify into the quarter-finals. In football, Romanian champions FCSB were defeated at home by the French team Olympique Lyon, 3-1, in the first leg of the Europa League round of 16. The decisive leg will be played next week in France. (AMP)

  • The benefits of Romania’s belonging in the EU

    The benefits of Romania’s belonging in the EU

    In January Romania marked 17 years of EU membership. In the same month an INSCOP poll showed that 9 out of 10 Romanians are against the idea that their country should get out of the community bloc, as compared to 72% in January 2022. Entitled “Romania between national and European in the misinformation era. Economic Patriotism, values and conspiracy”, the survey, ordered by Funky Citizens organization, has revealed a 67% trust rate in the European Union as compared to 56% in January 2022. The aforementioned survey was the first conducted after the shock caused by the cancellation of the presidential election in December last year.

    As if to respond to those who denigrate community institutions, who aren’t few nowadays, the Romanian Minister of Investment and European Projects, Marcel Bolos, writes on Facebook: “In a time when extremist voices are trying to downplay the benefits of Romania’s belonging in the European Union, let’s not forget that development is not an issue of naïve pride, but of pragmatism. Romania didn’t grow out of nothing; it didn’t change overnight and certainly didn’t develop by denying opportunities.”

    Since its accession, Bolos says, Romania has got over 100 billion Euros in European funds, gross value. And this is the engine that has fundamentally changed the structure of our economy, the minister says. According to him, Romania no longer relies on a peripheral economy, being a country that is rapidly bridging gaps and which has overcome Poland, Hungary, Croatia and Greece in terms of the GDP per capita, which is an essential indicator for the standard of living.

    “Figures are extremely relevant; the value of the investment made is nearly equal to the GDP at the time of accession. If we are unaware of this we tend to blame the European bloc, but the fact that we are presently at the highest level of our development, is something that we owe to our EU and NATO membership”, Minister Bolos also says.

    According to him, the European funds Romania received are reflected in the country’s infrastructure, with nearly 900 kilometers of motorways and roads built in the past two decades. Over two million Romanians have been connected to the water & sewerage networks and according to Minister Bolos, over 100 thousand companies have benefitted from development grants, thousands of schools and hospitals have been refurbished, fitted with proper equipment and enlarged. Stable jobs have been created and fresh investment made.

    All these have given an impetus to the economy and the annual pace of the private investment in the economy tripled in 2024 as compared to the time of accession from 20 billion Euros to 70 billion, Bolos says.

    He believes that without European money, Romania would have remained stuck into an endless cycle of underdevelopment, being dependent on a national budget, which is insufficient for strategic development. “There is one reality only: the EU has been our partner in development. And by belonging in the European bloc, Romania has opted for progress”, Minister Boloş’ post says.

    (bill)

  • March 5, 2025 UPDATE 1

    March 5, 2025 UPDATE 1

    Defense – The Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu welcomed the proposals launched by the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, regarding the exemption of defense spending from the excessive deficit procedure, a solution for which Romania has constantly advocated, he said. In a message posted on Facebook, the prime minister also stated that Romania supports the allocation of additional funds for weaponry, provided that the money reaches Romanian factories. He also specified that Bucharest remains on the same coordinates so far, namely in favor of increasing the defense spending and against sending Romanian troops to Ukraine. The President of the European Commission proposed the creation of a new “ReArm Europe” plan, which could mobilize almost 800 billion Euros for defense investments in the European Union and for military aid for Ukraine invaded by the Russian army.

     

    Russia – The air and naval military attaché of the Russian Federation in Bucharest and his deputy have been declared persons not welcome (personae non gratae) on the territory of Romania. The decision of the Romanian authorities was communicated on Wednesday to the chargé d’affaires of the Russian Embassy in Bucharest, who was summoned to the headquarters of the Foreign Ministry. The institution specifies that the two military diplomats were sanctioned for carrying out activities that run counter to the provisions of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations of 1961.

     

    EU – The citizens of European Union member states, including Romanians, can apply, as of Wednesday, to obtain the electronic travel authorization required from April 2 to enter the United Kingdom or to transit this country on the way to another destination. Requests must be sent on the official UK ETA application. The Romanian Foreign Ministry specifies that the electronic visa will be valid for two years and can be used for multiple trips to the United Kingdom throughout this period. ETA costs 10 pounds, around 60 lei, for all age categories, including minors. The fee will be paid at the time of application, and the money will not be refunded in case of refusal, the Bucharest diplomacy also specifies. (LS)

  • February 4, 2025

    February 4, 2025

    A roundup of local and international news.

     

    PLAN – European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen proposed a new fund on Tuesday that could mobilize almost 800 billion euros for defense investment in the European Union. The money would be spent on supporting Ukraine and “taking more responsibility for our own European security”, the EC leader said. “We are in an era of re-armament, and Europe is ready to massively boost its defence spending,” the EC chief said. According to her, the Commission is to provide loans worth 150 billion euros to be used for air and missile defense, artillery systems, missiles and ammunition, drones and anti-drone systems, as well as to meet other needs, from cybersecurity to military mobility. “With this equipment, member states can massively increase their support for Ukraine,” Ursula von der Leyen said.

     

    WEAPONS – Washington has decided to suspend military aid to Ukraine following a dispute between US President Donald Trump and his Ukrainian counterpart Volodymyr Zelenskyy in the Oval Office, White House officials confirmed to Bloomberg, Fox News and CNN. The pause will last until Donald Trump determines that Ukrainian leaders demonstrate a good faith commitment to peace, according to Bloomberg and Fox News reports. All deliveries of US military equipment that are not currently on Ukrainian territory will be suspended, including weapons in transit on aircraft and ships or waiting in transit zones in Poland. The US president has taken on the views of Russian President Vladimir Putin in recent weeks, falsely claiming that Ukraine started the war and accusing Volodymyr Zelensky of being a dictator, but his decision to stop providing military aid is a step that could have real consequences for the balance of power in the conflict and strengthen Putin’s position, CNN notes.

     

    DEFENSE – Romania’s acting President, Ilie Bolojan, had a telephone conversation on Monday with the Secretary General of the North Atlantic Alliance, Mark Rutte, on which occasion he thanked Romania for its contribution to the alliance, welcomed the increase in Bucharest’s defense budget and reaffirmed the commitment of NATO and the United States to collective defense and Article 5, the Presidential Administration reports. President Bolojan said that NATO remains the main guarantor of Romania’s security, and Article 5 is the one that most effectively deters threats and attacks against allies. Regarding the situation in Ukraine, he highlighted the need for a just and lasting peace, as well as the importance of maintaining support for this country.

     

    MOLDOVA – The European Union will allocate this year to the Republic of Moldova an additional aid of 60 million euros to strengthen its defense capabilities, the European Council President Antonio Costa said in ChisinauThe European official specified that, under the European Peace Facility, created to support the defense capabilities of various countries, the Republic of Moldova is the second beneficiary, with about 37 million euros allocated so far. Costa visited Chisinau on the occasion of the third anniversary of the Republic of Moldova’s application for EU membership.

     

    INVESTORS – Representatives of foreign investors in Romania, who had talks with interim President Ilie Bolojan, highlighted the need for reforms aimed at cutting red tape, improving administrative efficiency and creating a sustainable fiscal framework, the Presidential Administration reports. The need for strategic investments in infrastructure, education, health and in value-added sectors, such as technology hubs, biomethane production and data centers, was discussed. Talks focused on attracting and continuously developing investments in the national economy, given the importance of political stability, fiscal predictability and maintaining a favorable climate for investors. President Ilie Bolojan reaffirmed Romania’s commitment to a firm Euro-Atlantic path, emphasizing that this framework provides security to investors and contributes to the long-term development of the economy. Bolojan emphasized that Romania’s economic development depends on attracting investment, access to modern technology and openess towards international markets.

     

    PONTIFF – Pope Francis, who suffered two episodes of acute respiratory failure on Monday afternoon, remained conscious and cooperative, the Vatican announced. The pontiff had difficulty breathing  and returned to non-invasive mechanical ventilation. It has been 19 days since Pope Francis, 88, was hospitalized at the Gemelli Hospital in Rome, following a diagnosis of double pneumonia. Doctors maintain a reserved prognosis, given the complexity of his condition, and hundreds of Catholics gathered in St. Peter’s Square for the eighth consecutive evening to pray for the Pontiff’s health. (EE)

  • Joint Statement on Artificial Intelligence

    Joint Statement on Artificial Intelligence

    Representatives of 58 countries from all continents convened in Paris on Tuesday to endorse a joint statement for “artificial intelligence that is to be open, inclusive and ethical”. At the end of a session jointly chaired by France and India, the participants “underlined the need for a global reflection integrating inter alia questions of safety, sustainable development, innovation, respect of international laws including humanitarian law and human rights and the protection of human rights, gender equality, linguistic diversity, protection of consumers and of intellectual property rights.” EU countries, Canada, India, China and the African Union are among the entities, which have endorsed the aforementioned statement.

    The French president, Emmanuel Macron, who co-hosted the conference, has been quoted by Radio Romania correspondent in Paris as saying, “we want a framework that prevents AI from being used for mass control or destruction.” He added that building trust in AI and its spread is a challenge for governments, civil society, investors and private player. The European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen has announced the launch of the Champions Initiative, a private-public partnership for record investment in the field at community level of roughly 200 billion Euros.

    “We want Europe to be one of the leading AI continents and this means embracing a way of life where AI is everywhere. We want AI to be a force for good. We want an AI where everyone collaborates and everyone benefits. This is our path. This is our European path”, von der Leyen went on to say.

    Also attending the meeting, the Romanian Minister of the Economy and Digitalization, Bogdan Gruia Ivan, has told Radio Romania that Bucharest is ready to play its part in the development of this technology of the future.

    Bogdan Gruia Ivan:” Europe has eventually understood how important it is to be at the table of those who are shaping the world’s future. And Romania is here for this reason. A couple of days ago we signed a 64-million Euro agreement for the Romanian AI hub, which is connecting the technical universities in Romania and which automatically includes us into this European Commission project as a regional research hub.”

     As international media has noticed, the USA and Britain are not among the signatories of the aforementioned document due to some opinion differences on regulating the new technologies. Unlike Europe, which wants to move faster, at the same time being a framework in the development of artificial intelligence, the Americans want that “all possible efforts be made to encourage pro-growth politics in the area”. The new US vice-president, J.D. Vance, explains that heavy regulation in the field could kill AI. Some commentators believe that the positions of London and Washington have highlighted two confronting world visions.

    (bill)

  • February 8, 2025

    February 8, 2025

    A roundup of local and international news.

     

    SIE – The Foreign Intelligence Service (SIE) has significantly contributed to meeting the national strategic objectives and honoring the commitments made by Romania within allied and European formats, President Klaus Iohannis said on Saturday, in his message on the 35th anniversary of SIE. According to the President, the information supplied by SIE on national security matters has been critical in making decisions for the Romanian state and in handling the increasingly complex security challenges, as part of the efforts to turn Romania into a resilient state, able to face diffuse and unpredictable challenges. Among others, Russia’s illegal war in Ukraine and its subversive hybrid actions in Romania and across Europe, the persistence of classic security risks, such as cyber, terrorism and hostile information activities, have continued to generate national and international security challenges and to shape the activity of the SIE, along with that of other institutions part of the National Security System, the President explained. He also said it is vital to strengthen inter-institutional cooperation and the one with external partners, in order to increase the Romanian state’s capacity to respond effectively to multiple security challenges, with an emphasis on hybrid threats.

     

    IMF- The International Monetary Fund (IMF) mission in Bucharest concluded talks with representatives of the main institutions responsible for Romania’s monetary and fiscal policies. Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu told the IMF experts that the Romanian Government is committed to comply with the budget deficit of 7% of the Gross Domestic Product and to implement the reforms assumed under the Recovery and Resilience Plan. Last fall, the IMF published its latest forecast on the Romanian economy, estimating a deficit at the same level as the one set by the government, 7%, for the end of 2025. The IMF estimates are more optimistic both in terms of economic growth, 3.3%, compared to only 2.5% expected by the authorities in Bucharest, and inflation, calculated at 3.6%, below the 4.4% target set by the government.

     

    WAGES – Romania, Lithuania, Bulgaria and Poland, from January 2015 to January 2025, had the highest average annual rate of increase in the minimum wage in the EU, Euronews reports. They reported increases between 10% and 14%, according to Eurostat data. On the other hand, the lowest average annual rate of increase in the minimum wage in the EU was in France (2.1%) and Malta (2.9%). 22 of the 27 EU member states have established a national minimum wage, the exceptions being Denmark, Italy, Austria, Finland and Sweden. The monthly minimum wage varies significantly across EU member states. Thus, Luxembourg, Ireland, the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium and France are the countries where the minimum wage exceeds 1,500 euros per month, while Croatia, Greece, Malta, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Latvia, Hungary and Bulgaria have the lowest minimum wage, below 1,000 euros per month.

     

    INVICTUS – A team of soldiers will represent Romania at this year’s Invictus Games Vancouver and Whistler 2025. The Invictus Games is an international sports competition that was first held in 2014 and aims to raise awareness about the gratitude we owe to the wounded soldiers. This year’s event will take place from February 8-16 in Vancouver and Whistler, Canada, and will bring together over 500 competitors from 23 nations around the world. The delegation that will accompany the Romanian team to Canada will be led by the Director of the Defence Staff, Major General Valentin Brînzei.

     

    DISCONNECTION – More than three decades after the collapse of the Soviet Union, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have begun to disconnect from Russia’s electricity grid and join the EU’s grid. The two-day process began on Saturday morning, with residents told to charge their devices, stock up on food and water and prepare for severe weather, Reuters reports. A giant, specially built clock will count down the final seconds before the transition, at a landmark ceremony in the Lithuanian capital on Sunday, attended by EU chief Ursula von der Leyen. The three Baltic nations will then officially disconnect from the grid that has connected them to Russia since the years after World War II.

     

    TENNIS – Italian Lucia Bronzetti qualified for the semifinals of the Transylvania Open (WTA 250) tennis tournament, hosted by Cluj-Napoca (northwestern Romania) after defeating her fellow Italian, Elisabetta Cocciaretto, in straight sets on Friday. Bronzetti, who previously defeated Simona Halep and American Peyton Stearns, is today up against Katerina Siniakova (the Czech Republic) in the semifinal. The other semifinal will see Russian Anastasia Potapova, the main favorite, against Belarusian Aleksandra Sasnovici. We recall that, after the defeat suffered in the match with Bronzetti, Simona Halep, the most famous tennis player in Romanian history, announced her retirement from the sport.

  • EU – higher defence expenses

    EU – higher defence expenses

    With a war, which seems to be dragging on at its borders and with a White House leader, whom some have described unpredictable, some transactional, and others both, the EU cannot afford the luxury of putting common defence and security at the bottom of its agenda.

    EU leaders have recently convened in Brussels for an informal meeting devoted exactly to this issue. And they have insisted not only on raising the member states’ defence budgets but also on funding some joint projects out of community funds. Funding and cooperation at EU level might offset budgetary constraints, which are presently preventing some of the countries from earmarking more money for defence. Differences in the defence output could thus be eliminated and what is being produced in the EU, namely gear and ammunition, could be used in all member countries.

    Also attending the talks, Romania’s president, Klaus Iohannis, has underlined that the discussions should not miss out on the NATO membership of many EU members. Romania, he insisted, does not accept the idea of a European defence, which is being separate or done in parallel with what we are presently doing in NATO, because such a defence might not work out well. Community cooperation must not overlap the role of NATO, seen as the main player in the trans-Atlantic security, most of the EU leaders also believe.

    Invited to the talks, NATO Secretary General, Mark Rutte, says that irrespective of the solutions found, Europe’s defence industry must grow and the main solution here is to raise the defence budgets.

    “We are now assessing the gaps for each of the allies between where we are and where we should be. And based on that, the capability targets will be decided upon. And based on that, we will decide on the new defence spending plans. But it will be considerably higher than 2 percent of the GDP, I can assure you” the Alliance leader said.

    In terms of procurement, the French president, Emmanuel Macron, was the only one to speak about “preferential purchase” from the European Union. This position, which would exclude a large part of US suppliers in the future, has triggered reluctance among member countries who want to avoid tense relations with United States against the present global insecurity background, as our correspondent in Brussels has noticed.

    The USA is a NATO ally, which has so far covered most of the Alliance’s procurement burden. And NATO Secretary General suggests the EU countries gradually take over more and more of this burden, not only in terms of covering NATO expenses, but also in terms of the support granted to Ukraine.

    President Klaus Iohannis reminded the Romanian journalists that in spite of the big deficit last year, Romania registered significant economic growths, which also allowed for bringing the defence budget up to 2.5% of the GDP, an example for the EU countries.

    (bill)

  • February 3, 2025 UPDATE1

    February 3, 2025 UPDATE1

    Budget – Romania’s 2025 budget bill will enter Parliament’s debate as of Tuesday, and the final vote is expected to take place by the end of the week. The vote is predictable as the parliamentarians of the ruling coalition (PSD-PNL-UDMR) have the majority. However, the document met with much criticism from the opposition parties, which submitted over 1,000 amendments. Adopted by the government at the end of last week, Romania’s budget bill for 2025 is based on an economic growth of 2.5%, an average inflation rate of 4.4% and a deficit of 7% of the GDP. According to the Finance Minister, Tanczos Barna, the budget focuses on investments, with record allocations of 150 billion lei (about 30 billion Euros).

     

    Investigation – The prosecutors from the Directorate for Fighting Organized Crime (DIICOT) carried out, on Monday, dozens of searches in Romania and Monaco, in a case involving fraud with particularly serious consequences, embezzlement, money laundering and tax evasion, related to what the press called the Nordis real estate business. The investigations targeted a number of about 70 suspects, natural and legal persons. Among the people interviewed are Laura Vicol, former head of the Legal Commission in the Chamber of Deputies, and Ioana Băsescu, the daughter of the former president of Romania, Traian Băsescu, who was called at the DIICOT headquarters to give explanations regarding her involvement as a notary in the Nordis business. Starting in 2018, three of the suspects allegedly initiated and set up an organized criminal group, which conceived and implemented a complex criminal mechanism, consisting, mainly, in the promotion and development of real estate projects under the cover of several commercial companies, followed by collecting money from clients, misleading buyers during the execution of pre-contracts and sale-purchase contracts. The leaders of the organized criminal group are said to have collected over 957,000,000 lei (over 195 million Euros) from customers as an advance payment within the framework of bilateral sale-purchase promises, respectively sales-purchase agreements.

     

    Defense – Europe must assume greater responsibility for its own defense in order to strengthen our strategic resilience, said President Klaus Iohannis, present, on Monday, in Brussels, at the informal meeting of EU leaders on defense issues. The discussions focused on military capabilities and the European defense industry. President Iohannis evoked, in this sense, the need for adequate financing seen not only as the allocation of more money, but also as the effective use of the already existing tools. Regarding defense, Romania’s president emphasized the need for complementarity between the European Union and NATO. (LS)

     

  • The European Commission and protecting domestic elections

    The European Commission and protecting domestic elections

     

    As efforts are building up to influence elections in the Member States, several EU countries, including France, Germany and Romania, have called on the Commission to take measures to protect elections from foreign interference. “Recent incidents require the urgent adoption of joint actions aimed at protecting the upcoming elections in the European Union,” reads a letter signed by 12 member countries.

     

    They warn against the growing threat to the stability and sovereignty of EU members, coming from foreign interference in the election process and public debates. They call on the Commission to use its powers under the Digital Services Act to safeguard electoral processes in the Member States. The document binds social media platforms to moderate and remove harmful content that includes hate speech, racism and xenophobia. According to Reuters, EU diplomats said that the call refers in particular to countries such as Russia and China, but to other actors as well.

     

    In December, the EC launched an investigation targeting the Chinese platform TikTok, suspected of not having taken measures to restrict foreign interference in November’s presidential elections in Romania.

     

    On the other hand, at the end of the General Affairs Council meeting in Brussels, the European Commissioner for Democracy, Justice, the Rule of Law and Consumer Protection, Michael McGrath, stressed the importance of protecting the integrity of elections, in particular from foreign interference.

     

    The EC believes that addressing this issue is an urgent matter, and says it is committed to strengthening Europe’s resilience to foreign threats to democratic processes in member states. In addition, the Commissioner added, the Commission will take into account the cancellation of the presidential elections in Romania when it draws up its 2025 report on the rule of law.

     

    It is also worth noting that the Venice Commission recently published a report on the cancellation of the presidential elections in Romania by the Constitutional Court at the end of last year. Its recommendations are that such a decision should not be based exclusively on classified information, which does not ensure the required transparency, but should indicate precisely the violations and the evidence for them. In addition, the power of the Constitutional Court to invalidate the elections should be limited to exceptional circumstances and clearly regulated, the Commission also says.

     

    Meanwhile, in Bucharest, the government has set the electoral calendar for the forthcoming elections. The first round of the presidential elections in Romania will take place on May 4, 2025, and voting abroad will take place over three days, between May 2 and 4. If no candidate gets more than half of the votes, a second round will be held on May 18, between the top two candidates. (AMP)

  • Housing as a fundamental human right

    Housing as a fundamental human right

    Housing costs are the biggest expense in households in the European Union, and the rising house prices and rents, the high construction costs and the rising mortgage interest rates are just some of the effects. Where does Romania stand in this context? ‘Housing must be treated as a fundamental right, so that all Europeans, including young people and vulnerable groups, should enjoy decent and sustainable living conditions.’ This was the sentiment expressed in one voice during the first housing forum at the end of last year in Brussels.

     

    A 2023 report showed that nearly half of the rent-paying Europeans felt they were living at the risk of having to leave their home in the next three months because they could no longer afford it. Meanwhile, homelessness is becoming one of the continent’s biggest problems, with nearly a million people without a home.

     

    According to the General Secretary of Housing of Europe, Sorcha Edwards, the current housing crisis has many facets. In addition to overcrowded areas and housing, which contrasts with under-occupied regions, we also face energy poverty, meaning houses that have not been modernized and insulated and thus push people into poor conditions, that is too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter. Another problem is housing for the elderly or disabled, which is not adapted to their needs.

     

    Sorcha Edwards: “We see also people, victims of domestic violence for instance, who do not find alternative accommodation. And of course, we see the most visible face of the housing crisis is homelessness. But the problem and why we have these problems in some areas is mixed. So, it’s sometimes a lack of capacity within local authorities, within governments, because this is a very complex issue.  And very often we have lost the knowledge within our governments to manage this complex sector.  And we have hoped that in many cases that the market would take care of it. And of course, when we leave a sector like this only to the market, we see opportunism, we see extraction of profit.”

     

    Although, according to Eurostat statistics from 2023, Romania is the country with the highest percentage of homeowners (93% of Romanians own the house they live in and only 7% are rent payers), Romanians’ houses were among the most crowded (40%), surpassed only by those in Latvia, with 40.9%. In addition, houses in Romania and Slovakia have the lowest number of rooms per person: 1.1 rooms against a European average of 1.6. At the opposite pole are Malta and Luxembourg, with 2.3 and 2.2 rooms per person respectively. In 2023, only 1.5% of the entire EU population lived in households without an indoor toilet, shower or bathtub, but, by far, the highest percentage of these were in Romania, over 20% (followed by Bulgaria and Latvia, with 7% each).

     

    Asked what solutions Romania could adopt, inspired by the successful projects of other member states, Sorcha Edwards answers: “Obviously in housing a copy-paste is not really possible. You have to look at your local needs, local scenarios, trends, average income of the population, what are the forecasts in terms of demographic forecasts, in terms of employment opportunities, are there areas where you predict more employment opportunities. So, you have a range of different considerations. But one that we have seen as a very successful approach is to increase the supply of limited profit, public or social housing, depending on which of those models fits more within the local culture and the local needs. So, what that can do is that it can ensure that you avoid housing exclusion, you help to avoid housing overburden rate, and you have to help to provide a choice for people.”

     

    Although the landscape differs from one member state to another, even from one area to another, the main difficulties in reducing the housing crisis at the European level do not differ much from those faced by Romania. Sorcha Edwards is back at the microphone: “So, what we are seeing now is a huge hike in the price of construction materials. This is obviously slowing down the delivery. We are also seeing difficulty in accessing the right amount of land. And if we think about also the potential for conversion of existing buildings, which obviously is also a fantastic option in terms of reducing CO2-embedded carbon in new housing deliveries, we are also seeing delays in the permits because of complexity around ownership of existing buildings. So, these are all issues that can be overcome if we have a clear vision and a clear political will and targets to reach.”

     

    Although Romania has to recover in different aspects compared to the other member states, and although rent and housing prices have also increased in this country, the increases were less dramatic than in most states. If from 2010 to the last quarter of 2024, prices increased by 230% in Hungary and Estonia, by 181% in Lithuania, by 113% in Portugal and by 110% in Bulgaria, in Romania, the increase was below 30%.

     

    Also, according to the expert Sorcha Edwards, the housing sector plays to the tune of the investors, and if their interest does not go beyond maximizing profit in the shortest possible time, access to homes for all European citizens will continue to remain a problem. (LS)

  • January 27, 2025

    January 27, 2025

     

    ART THEFT Recovering the golden helmet of Cotofenesti and the three Dacian bracelets of Sarmizegetusa Regia, stolen on Friday night from the Drents Museum in the Dutch city of Assen, is a priority, the Romanian authorities say. The prime minister’s office is checking the culture ministry’s documents under which the artifacts had been sent to the exhibition, and the culture minister Natalia Intotero will meet with the royal family and the prime minister of the Netherlands to convey Bucharest’s firm message that the heritage pieces be recovered as quickly as possible. Romania’s PM Marcel Ciolcu has set up a task force comprising interior ministry, justice and culture ministry officials as well as Romanian police, to manage the retrieval of these items of immeasurable historical value.

     

    BUDGET The leaders of the Social Democratic Party, the National Liberal Party, and the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, in the ruling coalition, should meet today for talks on the state budget bill and on means to reduce the deficit to no more than 7% of GDP this year. The original deadline was today, January 27, but the bill could be postponed, as recent trade union protests prompted the ruling parties to announce they are looking for legislative solutions to alter the order underlying the budget law. The alterations, which will be operated in Parliament in the first half of February, concern payment of overtime on weekends or public holidays for employees in the defence, public order and national security system. The coalition would have wanted the budget bill to reach the government this week for approval, and to be sent to Parliament early next month.

     

    FOREIGN AFFAIRS The EU foreign ministers convene today in a Foreign Affairs Council (FAC) meeting, with the main topics on the agenda including the war in Ukraine, the Middle East crisis and relations with the US after Donald Trump’s return to the White House. The FAC meeting in Brussels is the first in this format organised under the Polish EU Council presidency, which began on 1 January, and will be chaired by the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas. It is also the first such meeting attended by Emil Hurezeanu as head of the Romanian diplomacy. The EU ministers will also have informal conference call with their Ukrainian counterpart, Andriy Sybiga.

     

    AGRICULTURE The Romanian minister of agriculture, Florin-Ionuţ Barbu, takes part on Monday in the first AgriFish Council meeting of this year, held in Brussels. According to a news release issued by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MADR), the agenda will concern the programme of the Polish presidency, unfair trading practices and strengthening the position of farmers in the food supply chain, trade and performance verification. The Polish EU Presidency will present its work programme and set out the main priorities in the field of agriculture and fisheries for the next six months. In turn, Member State officials will analyse the necessary revision of the performance verification procedure under the financing rules of the Common Agricultural Policy, the Romanian agriculture ministry explained.

     

    BACCALAUREATE High school senior students in Romania are taking the oral tests in the first session of this year’s Baccalaureate exam starting today. The assessment of communication skills in Romanian takes place until Wednesday, with the oral tests in ethnic minorities’ native languages held over three days, starting on January 29. The foreign language oral tests are scheduled between February 3 and 5, and digital skills will be tested between February 5 and 7. The organisation of these tests during the school year has been criticised by some students, teachers and education experts, especially because high school students must also attend classes during the exam days. The written tests in the Baccalaureate exam begins on May 30 and end on June 30, when the final results are to be announced.

     

    BELARUS The incumbent president of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko won the presidential election with 87.6% of the votes, according to an exit poll which also says his 4 opponents received 1-2% of the votes. International media say the elections are intended to give a seventh consecutive term to the authoritarian Lukashenko, in power since 1994 and viewed as the most compliant ally of Putin’s Russia. On the eve of the election, the EU diplomacy chief Kaja Kallas stated that the regime in Minsk has “no legitimacy” and called the “sham election” an affront to democracy. In turn, MEPs demanded that the results of the Belarus election not be recognized, especially since the previous elections, in 2020, which were very likely rigged, were followed by ruthless repression of protests. According to the UN, more than 300,000 Belarusians out of a total population of nine million have fled their country for political reasons, mainly to neighbouring Poland. There are reportedly over 1,200 political prisoners in Belarus. (AMP)

  • Romanians and the westward direction

    Romanians and the westward direction

    A new INSCOP survey shows Romanians’ attachment to NATO and the European Union.

     

     

    Although Romania is going through a period of deep social dissatisfaction and frustration, these are not related to citizens’ attachment to NATO and the European Union. An INSCOP study, published on Tuesday, shows that 90% of Romanians reject the idea of ​​leaving NATO, a record level of adherence to the North Atlantic Organization. According to the research, based on data collected at the end of last year, in the last three years there has been a 10% increase in Romanians’ adherence to the Westward direction as regards political and military alliances. However, over half of respondents feel exposed to disinformation and fake news through television channels and social networks. At the same time, more than three quarters say that their voting options in the latest elections were affected by this phenomenon.

     

    Referring to the survey figures, INSCOP director Remus Ştefureac believes that what is happening now in Romania “has nothing to do with a decrease in Romanians’ adherence to the Euro-Atlantic world, but rather with internal problems, economic and social problems, problems related to the lack of trust in the political class and their integrity, lack of professionalism, the feeling of things being arranged so that a certain party wins”. According to him, these “are internal issues that are related to our internal debate, they are not topics related to the way Romanians relate to the Euro-Atlantic world”.

     

    The survey also shows that, for almost three-quarters of respondents, Romania’s EU membership is seen as an advantage in terms of effects on economic and social life, on family and personal life. Three years ago, only 55% of Romanians believed this. At the same time, 88% say that Romania should remain in the EU, and 78% that the country’s economic future depends on EU membership. Three years ago, a quarter of the population said that Romania would be better off leaving the Union. Currently, over half of Romanians believe that the country should put national interests first, even if this means violating EU rules.

     

    The survey also shows that over half of Romanians believe that the authorities act more in the interests of other countries, that the economy is controlled by foreigners, that the state helps multinational companies more than Romanian companies, or that there is an agreement between richer countries to keep Romania in poverty. At the same time, over 60% of Romanians say that they are seen as lower-ranking citizens in Europe, but that Romania is culturally superior to Western countries. The research concludes that 69% of those surveyed would vote for a nationalist party or a nationalist candidate in the presidential elections. The research is considered one of the most relevant published by INSCOP in recent years, providing a clear understanding of social discontent and the elements influencing Romanians’ perceptions in the current geopolitical context.

     

  • December 28, 2024

    December 28, 2024

    Meeting – Romania’s Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, is today participating in the meeting of the National Tripartite Council for Social Dialogue, a body that brings together employer and trade union confederations and government representatives. The meeting takes place after, on Friday, during the consultations of the government coalition from Bucharest made up of the PSD-PNL-UDMR, the emergency ordinance on the basis of which the state budget for next year will be built was not finalized. According to some political sources, the most recent form of the ordinance provides that in 2025 state employment will be blocked, overtime will be compensated with free time, and state salaries and pensions will be frozen. The coalition leaders must also establish the date on which the presidential election will be held.

     

    Crime report – Romania is among the states with the lowest level of crime, offering a more favorable situation from this point of view than many Western European countries, shows a Romanian Interior Ministry (MAI) press release based on the reports of the US Department of State and the European Commission. According to them, Romania is recognized as a very safe country for citizens and tourists. In the ‘Report for American citizens traveling abroad’, Romania is indicated as having a low and very low risk of crime. According to the MAI, official international documents highlight Romania’s significant progress in combating crime, confirming its status as a safe country. In recent years, Romania has recorded figures below the European and international average for crimes such as robberies, thefts and other acts committed with violence, the press release also shows.

     

    Tennis – The Romanian tennis players Anca Todoni and Ana Bogdan on Saturday qualified for the main draw of the WTA 500 tournament in Brisbane. Ana Bogdan faced the Colombian Emiliana Arango in the decisive match, whom she defeated 6-2, 6-4, and will debut in the main draw in Brisbane against the Russian Anastasia Potapova. Anca Todoni won the match with Slovakian Anna Karolina Schmiedlova, 6-2, 6-3, and will debut in the competition against Cristina Bucsa from Spain.  The WTA 500 tournament in Brisbane (Australia), with total prizes worth more than 1.5 million dollars, will take place between December 29 and January 5.

     

    Moldova – The Republic of Moldova (with a majority Romanian-speaking population) has decided to increase defense spending and promises that the military investments budget will reach 1% of the Gross Domestic Product in five years. The provision is included in the National Defense Strategy, adopted by the Moldovan Parliament. The strategy identifies as security risks to Moldova the continuation of the war Russia started against Ukraine and the hybrid operations carried out by Moscow against Chisinau. Also, according to the Defense Minister, Anatolie Nosatîi, the illegal presence of the Russian armed forces in Transndniester represents a threat to Moldova’s security and puts in difficulty the legal functioning and the international recognition of the state’s neutrality status. The Republic of Moldova has the smallest army in Europe, relative to the population, and does not have its own defense industry. According to statistical data, the Republic of Moldova ranks 144 out of 145 as a military power worldwide.

     

    Schengen – More than 166,300 people, Romanian and foreign citizens, and approximately 45,100 means of transport completed the formalities for crossing the Romanian border, both to enter or exit the country, on the third day of Christmas, the General Inspectorate of Border Police informs. We remind you that 33 crossing points on Romania’s border with Hungary and Bulgaria, as well as from the Black Sea and the Maritime Danube, will be closed from January 1, 2025, when Romania enters the Schengen free travel area with land borders too. 17 road and rail points are located on Romania’s western border with Hungary, and 14 road points, including ferry crossings, rail and port crossing points on the border with Bulgaria. The data appear in a draft government decision designed by the Interior Ministry. (LS)

  • December 26, 2024

    December 26, 2024

    Christmas – For New Rite Orthodox Christians, Greek Catholics and Catholics all over the world, including Romania, which has a majority Orthodox population, December 26 is the second day of Christmas, the celebration of the Nativity, one of the biggest in Christianity. On December 26, the Orthodox Church celebrates the Solemnity of Mary, the Holy Mother of God, one of the oldest feasts in honor of the Virgin Mary. The holiday was established 1,500 years ago. Christmas is a celebration of generosity and compassion, of the revival of hope for a better future, President Klaus Iohannis wrote on a social network. Christmas is a celebration of joy, and true faith is the one that works through love, says the Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, Daniel. At the Vatican, Pope Francis made a new call for peace in Ukraine and in the Middle East. Old Rite Orthodox believers, who form the majority in Russia, Ukraine, Serbia and Georgia, celebrate Christmas on January 7.

     

    Government – One of the priorities of the new Romanian government is to draft next year’s budget, which seems to be, at the same time, the main difficulty it will face in the assumed effort to reduce expenses. The draft budget is based on a new emergency ordinance regarding fiscal-budgetary measures, which is to be approved in the following days. In includes a large part of the unpopular measures that the government must implement in order to reduce the deficit. Some of the measures are the freezing of salaries and pensions in 2025 or the taxation of large fortunes. The investiture of the new government in Bucharest, made up of the PSD-PNL-UDMR, sent a positive signal to Romanian businessmen and to foreign investors, claims the Prime Minister and social-democratic leader Marcel Ciolacu.

     

    Schengen – As of January 1, 2025, when Romania enters the Schengen free travel area also with land borders, 33 border crossing points with Hungary and Bulgaria, as well as from the Black Sea and the maritime Danube, will be permanently closed, namely 17 road and rail crossing points located on Romania’s western border with Hungary and 14 road crossing points, including ferry crossings, rail and port crossing points on the border with Bulgaria and two port crossing points from Brăila and Cernavodă. The Interior Ministry has put up for debate a draft government decision in this regard. From the beginning of 2025, there will no longer be checks at the borders with Hungary and Bulgaria at the crossing points. Such checks will only be done randomly, based on risk analysis. Lifting controls at the land borders takes place after the so-called partial accession of Romania and Bulgaria to the Schengen area, made at the end of March, when they joined the area only with the air and sea borders.

     

    Recovery and Resilience – At the beginning of this week, Romania received over 37 million Euros from the European Commission as part of the second payment request from the National Recovery and Resilience Plan following the COVID-19 pandemic. So far, Romania has received 9.4 billion Euros out of a total of over 28 and a half billion Euros allocated to it. In mid December, the Romanian Government sent the European Commission the payment request number three, which involves a financing of 2.7 billion Euros. The money is given in the form of grants, and a series of reforms must be carried out in return.

     

    Moldova – The Russian Foreign Ministry accused NATO, on Wednesday, of trying to turn the Republic of Moldova into a logistics center for the supply of the Ukrainian army and of trying to bring its military infrastructure closer to Russia. Maria Zaharova, the spokeswoman for the ministry, said that the majority of the population of the Republic of Moldova (mostly Romanian speaking) does not want to join the military alliance. She referred to the extensive arms transfers to Moldova in recent months and to Maia Sandu’s pro-Western views. In Bucharest, President Klaus Iohannis congratulated Maia Sandu on taking over her second mandate. Romania and the Republic of Moldova will continue to work for well-being, stability, European values, resilience and democracy, said Klaus Iohannis. On December 24, Maia Sandu was officially inaugurated as president of the Republic of Moldova. In her speech, she emphasized that European integration and justice reform remain the main objectives in her second term. Despite the regional and global crises, caused by the pandemic, the war in Ukraine, external threats and the Kremlin’s energy blackmail, the Republic of Moldova managed to maintain peace and advance on the European path, she said. Maia Sandu is the first woman to hold this position and the first president elected by direct vote, who obtained two mandates. (LS)