Radio România Internațional

Tag: EU Council

  • September 28, 2018 UPDATE

    September 28, 2018 UPDATE

    SAME-SEX MARRIAGE – Same sex relationships fall within the ‘private life and ‘family life categories, argue the judges of Romanias Constitutional Court in response to a notification by a Romanian-American couple related to a Civil Code article regarding the non-recognition of same-sex marriages. According to the Constitutional Court, members of stable same sex couples have the right to express their personality as part of their relationship and to have their corresponding rights and obligations recognised officially. The Constitutional Court adds that Romania has no form of official and legal recognition of same sex relationships, a situation only found in 5 other EU member states, namely Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Slovakia. The Constitutional Court clarifications come during the campaign for a referendum on October 6 and 7, when Romanians are called to vote if they want the concept of “family redefined in the Constitution as being based on the marriage of a man and a woman, rather than of spouses, as it is at present. The revision bill is based on a citizens initiative and it was denounced as discriminatory by human rights and sexual minority rights associations.




    TREASON CASE – The Directorate Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism in Romania (DIICOT) announced on Friday that it has closed a case based on the high treason accusations brought by the president of the National Liberal Party in opposition against PM Viorica Dăncilă. According to the Directorate, the case, which concerned the memorandum approved by the Government with respect to the relocation of the Romanian Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, was dismissed because no breach of the law has been established. The criminal complaint filed in May by the Liberal leader Ludovic Orban also concerned Liviu Dragnea, the president of the Social Democratic Party in power, who was accused of unlawful disclosure of state secrets, Orban said at the time.




    EU PRESIDENCY – The Government of Romania must stand united ahead of taking over the rotating presidency of the EU Council, and domestic political disputes are an obstacle in this respect, the Ambassador of Germany to Bucharest, Cord Meier-Klodt said on Friday. The German diplomat also added that with the EU presidency, which Romania is to hold in the first half of 2019, come opportunities that the country must not miss. The statements were made in Cluj, north-western Romania, where the German Ambassador attended a conference on The Romanian Presidency of the European Union Council: Opportunities and Challenges. The participants also included the Ambassador of Romania to Germany, Emil Hurezeanu.




    INFLATION – The annual inflation rate in the Euro zone increased in September 2018 from 2% to 2.1%, shows a preliminary survey published on Friday by Eurostat. In September, the most significant price hikes in the Euro zone were reported in the energy field, where an annual increase of 9.5% was reported, followed by 2.7% price rises for foodstuffs, alcohol and cigarettes and 1.3% for services. In August, Eurostat says, Romania had the highest year-on-year inflation rate among EU states for the 7th consecutive month, with a 4.7% increase in consumer prices, after 4.3% in July. The National Bank of Romania revised its inflation forecast for the end of 2018 from 3.6% to 3.5%.




    TURKEY – The Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel, criticised the situation in Turkey during a joint press conference on Friday with the visiting President of Turkey Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The German official mentioned issues such as the freedom of the press and human rights, and called for immediate solutions to the situation of several German citizens detained in Turkey. Still, Merkel listed shared German-Turkish interests, including the partnership within NATO, the migration problems and the fight against terrorism. In turn, Erdogan called on Germany to extradite the supporters of Turkish cleric Gülen. Hundreds of supporters of this terror group live in Germany, the Turkish President said, blaming them for a failed coup 2 years ago. Turkey and Germany also announced on this occasion that they will have a meeting in the forthcoming weeks, together with Russia and France, on the situation in Syria.




    TENNIS – The Romanian tennis players Irina Begu and Raluca Olaru Friday qualified for the doubles final of the tournament in Tashkent (Uzbekistan), with 250,000 US dollars in total prize money. In the semi-finals, they defeated the Russians Margarita Gasparian and Anastasia Potapova, 2-1. In the final Begu and Olaru are facing Olga Danilovic (Serbia) / Tamara Zidansek (Slovenia).


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • Conclusions of the Salzburg summit

    Conclusions of the Salzburg summit


    The European Union wishes to finalise Brexit talks by October so that a new summit can be held in November in order to finalise and formalise the deal with London, said the president of the European Council Donald Tusk on Thursday after the EU summit in the Austrian city of Salzburg.



    In the Brexit talks, Tusk warned, the Union is not willing to compromise on the free movement of people, goods, services and capital and is therefore sceptical about the current proposals of the British government. Representing Romania, president Klaus Iohannis called for maintaining close post-Brexit collaboration with the British authorities in matters of security and external policy.



    Bucharest wants the European Union to have a unitary and coherent voice in the negotiations with the UK in order to arrive at an agreement that is fair to all sides involved. Romanias priority is protecting the rights and interests of its citizens living in the UK, president Iohannis said.



    He added that Romanias position is also reflected in a joint declaration signed by Romanias foreign minister Teodor Melescanu and his counterparts in Poland and Lithuania, which warns of the significant risks of the UKs withdrawal.



    Without the UK, the Unions position on the world stage may be weaker, making it more vulnerable to external threats, writes the declaration of the three countries on the eastern flank of the community bloc and NATO.



    In Salzburg, the leaders of the member states also looked at the recent legislative proposals of the European Commission with respect to internal security and expanding the mandate and staff of Frontex, the agency responsible for the protection of the Unions external borders.



    The Austrian presidency of the European Union Council presented the stage of implementation of two new concepts proposed last summer, that of disembarkation platforms for migrants outside the EU and that of controlled centres within the EU. Romania is in favour of continuing talks in this respect, president Iohannis said.



    Klaus Iohannis: “We must work fast on several regulations that would allow for a more technical, more institutional approach of the migration phenomenon and the relocation of migrants. We must consider expanding the Frontex staff and providing the agency with perhaps clearer tasks in terms of combating illegal migration also in the area of EUs external borders.”



    According to Radio Romanias correspondent, closer cooperation is envisaged between the origin countries of the migrants and the transit countries. A special summit with the Arab states may be held at the beginning of next year, possibly in February, during the Romanian presidency of the EU Council.




  • August 9, 2018 UPDATE

    August 9, 2018 UPDATE

    PROTEST – A large-scale protest by members of the Romanian diaspora against the ruling coalition is scheduled to take place on Friday in front of the government headquarters in Bucharest. City Hall announced that the protest is not organised by anyone in particular, as the law provides, as no entity has applied for a protest protocol. One man who was broadcast urging people towards violence against the authorities has been indicted by organised crime prosecutors. The Communications director for the Romanian gendarmes Marius Militaru told potential protesters on Thursday to refrain from giving way to provocations towards violence. Bucharest gendarme spokesperson Georgian Enache called on protesters to aid public order enforcers to do their job in case violence ensues.



    EU PRESIDENCY – Some 1,500 experts have been trained for Romanias taking over the rotating presidency of the EU Council on January 1, 2019, the minister delegate for European affairs, Victor Negrescu, told a TV channel on Thursday. According to him, the training programme started last year, with support from the European Institute in Romania, the European Commission and the General Secretariat of the EU Council. The Romanian official explained that these experts must be able to listen to the views of member states and come up with consensual solutions acceptable to all member countries.



    GRAINS – The research firm Strategie Grains has cut its forecast for this years European wheat harvest to a 6-year low. Analysts say this is because circumstances in northern Europe led to disastrous crops, whereas favourable conditions in Romania, Bulgaria, Hungary, Italy and Spain offset the pressures on crops caused by the hot and dry weather in Germany, Poland, France and the Czech Republic, Reuters reports. The crop forecaster also emphasises that Romania and Bulgaria will have more wheat for fodder, thanks to the recent rainfalls. In a report released on Thursday, the French company estimates that the EUs wheat crop will amount to 127.7 million tonnes, 10% less than last year. Meanwhile, the harvest in Romania, the Unions 3rd largest wheat exporter, might decrease by at least 20% this year, the head of the Romanian League of Farmer Associations Laurenţiu Baciu warned last week.



    DEFENCE – The Romanian Defence Minister Mihai Fifor Thursday received the new Ambassador of Slovakia to Romania, Karol Mistrik. The talks focused on bilateral cooperation within NATO and EU projects and initiatives. The 2 officials also discussed the importance of implementing the decisions made at the recent NATO Summit in Brussels, and expressed interest in strengthening the bilateral cooperation in the defence sector.



    DIPLOMACY – The Romanian Foreign Ministry responded on Thursday to statements made by Italys deputy PM Matteo Salvini, who accused Romania and Bulgaria of sending slaves to Western Europe. According to Mediafax news agency, Bucharest says any connections made between the citizens of a country and a crime category is unacceptable. Romania takes responsibility for what its citizens do abroad, and has adopted the international standards for the prevention and combating of human trafficking, being a signatory of the main relevant international documents. Matteo Salvini, Interior Minister and deputy PM of Italy and leader of the radical Northern League party, has accused Romania and Bulgaria of sending slaves into western Europe, and asked for measures to restrict human trafficking and exploitation.



    WEST NILE – A person died in Romania from the West Nile virus, the National Centre for Infectious Disease Monitoring and Control announced on Thursday. The man was 79 years old and suffered from chronic diseases. The Public Health Ministry announced there is no risk of an epidemic, and the cases reported so far are isolated. Experts warn that West Nile is not transmitted between humans, but that it is spread through mosquito bites. 23 West Nile patients have been confirmed in Romania since early May.




    SWINE FEVER – In Brăila County, in south-eastern Romania, 2 new African swine fever hotbeds were confirmed on Thursday, bringing the county total to 18. According to the latest data, the total number of hotbeds in Romania is nearly 580, in over 100 villages in 8 counties. More than 78,000 pigs have been culled. The owners will receive compensations for their losses, and the forthcoming budget adjustment earmarks additional funding for eradicating this disease.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • July 18, 2018 UPDATE

    July 18, 2018 UPDATE

    CCR — The Constitutional Court of Romania on Wednesday postponed for September 18 discussing the notification made by President Klaus Iohannis in relation to modifying and amending the law on the organization and functioning of the Superior Council of Magistracy. President Iohannis claims that Parliament rejected, without any motivation, his request for re-examination of the provisions related to the functioning of the Superior Council of Magistracy, in which he showed that the role of the president as a guarantor of the independence of the judiciary and the functioning of the Judicial Inspection was affected. Also on Wednesday the Constitutional Court rejected the notification of the opposition Liberal Party and Save Romania Union on the modifications to the status of judges and prosecutors and postponed for September 25 debating the notifications of the two parties and of the Supreme Court related to the draft law modifying the criminal procedure code and the law on judicial organization. In another development, the Constitutional Court admitted Wednesday the notifications made by President Iohannis, and the opposition parties: the Liberal Party, Save Romania Union and the People’s Movement Party in relation to the law on the setting up of the Sovereign Fund for Development and Investments. The president of the Court Valer Dorneanu pointed out that the law was declared unconstitutional because the fund should not have been set up by a law but through a government decision. The Constitutional Court of Romania also admitted the notification regarding the right to free movement and stay of same sex spouses in the spirit of the European Court of Justice.



    Legal cooperation — The Romanian chief prosecutor Augustin Lazar on Wednesday talked in Bucharest with Michael Roth, minister of state for Europe with Germany’s Foreign Ministry. According to a communiqué of the General Prosecutor’s Office the two officials talked about bilateral and international legal cooperation, about the progress made by Romania in reforming the judiciary and fighting corruption as well as about current judicial issues, including the recent legislative modifications. Michael Roth remarked the progress made by the Romanian judicial system in the past years but expressed interest in and concern over the recent changes to the criminal legislation, the communiqué also shows.



    Polo — Romania’s national men’s water polo team obtained their first victory on Wednesday at the European Championships in Barcelona, after defeating Slovakia 9-5, in Group D. On Monday, in their debut match, the Romanians were defeated 5-11 by Serbia, holder of the continental title. The Romanians will play the last match of the group on Friday against Russia. The best 16 European water polo teams are participating in the 2018 championships. In the previous European Championship held two years ago the Romanian team was ranked 10th, their best performance being the 4th place in 1993 and 2006.



    Free trade agreement — ‘The signing of the free trade agreement between the EU and Japan is a huge chance for Romanian exporters, who should be aware of the opportunities presented to them. Romania should not miss the opportunity of being massively present on the market of the world’s 3rd biggest economy, said Stefan Radu Oprea, the Romanian minister for the Business Environment, Trade and Entrepreneurship. We recall that on July 17 the EU and Japan signed, in Tokyo, a free trade agreement that will eliminate nearly all tariffs on bilateral trade exchanges between the two sides. This is the biggest trade agreement ever negotiated by the EU, and after ratification in the European Parliament, Japan and the EU will create a free trade area with 600 million inhabitants, that will account for almost one thirds of the world’s GDP.



    Romania – Austria Cooperation — Economic relations with Austria are solid and have a still unexploited potential, said Wednesday the Romanian Foreign Minster Teodor Melesanu after meeting in Bucharest his Austrian counterpart, Mrs. Karin Kneissel. Austria, which on July 1 took over the EU’s rotating presidency, remains the second largest foreign investors in Romania and Romania is interested in continuing to attract further Austrian investments, minister Melescanu added. The Romanian foreign minister showed that the Romanian community was very well integrated within the Austrian society, the Romanian community being the second largest community of European citizens in Austria. In turn, the Austrian Foreign Minister pointed out that the talks touched upon such issues as education, human rights and energy. Karin Kneissel underlined that strengthening the rule of law was an important discussion.



    Inflation — June was the 5th consecutive month when Romania reported the highest annual inflation rate among EU states, with an increase in consumption prices of 4.7%, on the rise in comparison with an annual inflation rate of 4.6% reported in May, show data made public on Wednesday by Eurostat. The annual inflation rate within the EU stagnated in June at 2%, a similar value being reported in the Euro zone. Among the EU states, high annual inflation rates were also reported in Estonia (3.9%) and Hungary (3.2%). In early May, the National Bank of Romania revised upwards to 3.6% the inflation forecast for the end of 2018, the previous forecast pointing to a 3.5% inflation rate in 2018.



    Chess — On Wednesday Romania won gold in the boy’s section and silver in the girls’ section at the U -18 category of the European Youth Team Chess Championship hosted by the German city of Bad Blankenbrug between July 11 and 18. The boys’ team was made up of Gavrilescu, George Stoleriu, Alexandru-Bogdan Banzea and Victor Văsieşiu and the girls’ team of Daria-Miruna Lehaci and Alessia-Mihaela Ciolacu. (news translated and updated by Lacramioara Simion)

  • June 17, 2018 UPDATE

    June 17, 2018 UPDATE

    CONSUL – In Constanţa, Romanias biggest sea port, the honorary consular office of Estonia was opened on Sunday, in the presence of the Romanian PM Viorica Dăncilă and her Estonian counterpart, Jüri Ratas. On Saturday they arrived on the Romanian Black Sea coast by the first regular flight connecting the Estonian capital city, Tallin, to Constanţa in Romania. The flight will be operated throughout the summer season. Viorica Dăncilă said she was hoping this connection to improve the trade and the economic, educational and cultural relations between the 2 countries. The head of the Romanian Government was on a 3-day visit to Lithuania and Estonia. On Saturday, the last day of the visit to Tallin, a Memorandum of Understanding was signed by the Romanian Ministry for the Business environment, Trade and Entrepreneurship and the Estonian Investment Agency, allowing for the development of a mechanism to encourage trade and increase bilateral investments. The first effect of the Memorandum will be the visit of an Estonian economic delegation to Romania in November.




    AGRICULTURE – The Romanian Agriculture and Rural Development Minister, Petre Daea, is taking part on Monday in Luxembourg in a meeting of the EU Agriculture and Fisheries Council. The main topic will be a legislative package concerning the Common Agricultural Policy after 2020, which the European Commission made public on June 1. According to a news release issued by the Romanian Agriculture Ministry, the change of certain regulations in the Common Fisheries Policy and the state of the agricultural market will also be discussed.




    MILITARY – The Air base in Câmpia Turzii, central Romania, is hosting an exercise called Dacian Eagle 2018, with 200 Romanian and 300 American troops taking part. The American aircraft participating in the exercise belong to the Air National Guard of Massachusetts. The exercise started on Friday, will conclude in 2 months and is designed to boost bilateral cooperation in the field.




    THEATRE – The Sibiu International Theatre Festival, the largest performing arts festival in Romania and one of the most important in the world, came to a close on Sunday night. For 10 days, the event brought together 3,000 artists in over 500 performances and tens of thousands of spectators. The highlight of Sundays agenda was a dialogue between the French actress Isabelle Huppert and the Palme dOr winner, Romanian director Cristian Mungiu. Isabelle Huppert was awarded a star on the Sibiu Walk of fame on Saturday. Also on Saturday, at the Festival Gala, the British Ambassador to Romania, Paul Brummell, read out Romanian poetry and said he will remain a friend of the Sibiu Festival and of Romania after the end of his diplomatic mission to Bucharest. The diplomat also presented a message to the Festival from HRH Charles, Prince of Wales, one of the patrons of this years edition. He congratulated the Festival on its 25th anniversary. Britain is proud of what you have achieved and of its modest contribution to your impressive journey, reads the message.




    MACEDONIA – The foreign ministers of Greece and the Republic of Macedonia, Nikos Kotzias and Nikola Dimitrov, Sunday signed an agreement stipulating the change of the name of the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia into the Republic of North Macedonia. The document was signed on Sunday in the border town of Prespes, in Greece, and is set to take effect in 6 months. The agreement paves the way for Greece giving up its veto to the EU and NATO accession of Macedonia. In the former Yugoslav republic, the deal must be ratified by Parliament, endorsed by a referendum and activated through a constitutional review. The agreement must be next approved by the Parliament of Greece.




    REFORM – The French finance minister, Bruno Le Maire, announced that France and Germany are very close to an agreement on the reform of the eurozone, the BBC reports. Further to talks with his German counterpart in Hamburg, Minister Le Maire expressed hope that the French President Emmanuel Macron will sign an agreement in this respect with the German Chancellor Angela Merkel, on Tuesday. The French leader proposes substantial reforms, including the allotment of a separate budget for the eurozone, BBC explains.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • May 16, 2018 UPDATE

    May 16, 2018 UPDATE

    PRESIDENCY – The president of Romania Klaus Iohannis is taking part on Wednesday and Thursday in Sofia, Bulgaria, in an informal meeting of the European Council and the EU – Western Balkans Summit. According to the Presidential Administration, the agenda of the informal European Council meeting includes topics concerning the digital, research and innovation sectors, as well as the decision of the US to introduce customs duties for steel and aluminum imports. At the EU-Western Balkans Summit, the heads of state and government will discuss connectivity, security and migration. President Iohannis will emphasise the importance of projects in the field of connectivity, infrastructure, energy and digital networks, which are able to enhance the convergence between the EU and the Western Balkans region, the Presidency also says.



    EU PRESIDENCY – The Minister delegate for European affairs Victor Negrescu Wednesday presented Parliaments specialist committees with a first draft of Romanias priorities during its EU presidency in the first half of next year. Safety and Europes shared values, the Europe of convergence: growth, cohesion, competitiveness, connectivity, and Europe as a global player are the four themes of interest of Romanias term at the helm of the EU Council. The document, which is undergoing validation procedures, will be presented in Parliament next month by PM Viorica Dăncilă. Negrescu said a national and political consensus on the final document was necessary.



    EMBASSY – The Ambassador of Palestine in Romania, Fuad Kokaly, was called to Ramallah for emergency talks, the Palestinian Embassy in Romania announced. The Foreign Ministry of the Palestinian National Authority (PNA) resorted to the measure as Romania is one of the countries having blocked a joint EU statement on the relocation of member state embassies from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, the news release reads. France Presse and DPA report that the Palestinian Authority announced on Wednesday having recalled “for consultations its ambassadors to 4 EU member countries that sent their representatives to a ceremony organised on Sunday by Israel to mark the opening of the US Embassy in Jerusalem. The 4 countries are Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic and Romania. The EU criticised the US President Donald Trumps recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and his decision to move the US Embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem.



    PROTESTS – The Government of Romania Wednesday passed an emergency order operating changes in the law on public sector employee salaries, agreed on with trade unions. The changes will benefit employees in public education and healthcare. Under the order, all the healthcare staff whose net incomes dropped in March compared to February will receive compensations. Also, the 30% ceiling on bonuses will no longer apply to on-duty time for doctors and nurses. Also on Wednesday the Government of Romania passed an emergency order earmarking the funds required for keeping specialised personnel in the defence industry. Defence industry staff Tuesday and Wednesday picketed the Government headquarters to warn about the problems facing the companies and the employees in this sector. The Romanian defence industry risks getting shut down because of the shortage of skilled personnel and the lack of investments, one of the protest organisers told AGERPRES news agency.



    BSEC – The Speaker of the Senate of Romania Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu Wednesday took part in a summit bringing together the heads of parliaments of the Organisation of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation member states. In an address during general debates on ’25 years of BCEC: the role of parliaments in shaping the future of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation’, Tăriceanu pleaded for an integrated approach to transport and energy infrastructure projects, able to improve the connectivity of member states. The Speaker of the Romanian Senate also reiterated his confidence in the future of cooperation at the Black Sea and in the contribution of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Black Sea Economic Cooperation in promoting peace, stability and wellbeing in member countries.



    TENNIS – Romanian and world no 1 Simona Halep will play on Thursday against the American Madison Keys, seed no 13, in the eighth-finals of the WTA tournament in Rome. On Wednesday in the second round Halep defeated Japans Naomi Osaka, no 21 WTA, in straight sets, while Madison Keys won against the Croatian Donna Vekic. This will be the 7th match between Simona Halep and Madison Keys, with the Romanian having won 5 of them. Also on Wednesday Irina-Camelia Begu, no 41 WTA, was defeated in the second round by the German Angelique Kerber, no 12 WTA.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • January 23, 2018

    January 23, 2018


    SCHENGEN – Romanias President Klaus Iohannis has today stated, at the annual meeting with the heads of the diplomatic missions accredited to Bucharest, that Romanias joining the Schengen area is essential. He has also stated that the logistics needed for Romanias holding the presidency of the EU Council in 2019 must be properly prepared. The head of state has given assurances that Romania will keep taking part in the debates on strengthening the economic and monetary union and has added that, unless it joins the Schengen area, Romania will not enjoy all the benefits ensured by its EU integration. The president has also stated that Romanias foreign policy pillars are the strategic partnership with the US and its membership to the EU and NATO. Klaus Iohannis has also stated that Bucharest firmly pleads for strengthening trans-Atlantic ties.



    OPPOSITION – The National Liberal Party, the main opposition party in Romania, has today presented the so called “black book of the PSD-ALDE governing”. The president of the party Ludovic Orban has stated that 2017 was a lost year for Romania and the country is heading in the wrong direction from a democratic, economic and social point of view. According to the analysis made by the liberals, out of the 724 measures that the government formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats committed to implementing, only 33 were actually implemented, and as regards major fields such as education, health and the economy, less than 5% of the promised measures were taken. Also, budget expenditure exceeded revenues and the money was not used for development, it was mainly spent on personnel expenditure. The National Liberal Party also claims that, when the coalition started ruling, the inflation rate was 0.2%, to then reach 3.3% in 2017. Previously, Orban had announced that the liberals would establish the way in which they were going to act in Parliament to prevent the validation of the new governmental team, headed by the Social Democrat MEP Viorica Dancila. More on this after the news.



    JUSTICE LAWS – The Constitutional Court is today debating claims filed by the High Court of Cassation and Justice and the opposition National Liberal Party and Save Romania Union regarding the changes brought to the justice laws. One of the notifications concerns the setting up of the Special Prosecutors Office responsible for investigating judges and prosecutors. Magistrates believe that this breaks the principle of equality before the law, as they would become the only professional category in Romania to have a special office for their own prosecution. In turn, the liberals say that the changes brought to the justice laws break several constitutional principles, including the senators and deputies right to have legislative initiatives. On Saturday, dozens of thousand of people protested again against the ruling coalition in Romania, whom they blame for trying to subordinate magistrates and to put an end to the fight against corruption. The changes in the justice laws have also been criticized by president Klaus Iohannis, the media and some of Romanias western partners. The Constitutional Court will probably issue its final ruling on the matter next month.



    IMF – In an update on its bi-annual “World Economic Outlook”, the International Monetary Fund estimates that world economy will increase its growth rate to 4% in 2018 and 2019. Also, the report reads that last year, economic activity in Europe and Asia was surprisingly better than estimated, so the fund has revised upwards its estimates for the Eurozone, in particular for Germany, Italy and the Netherlands. According to the IMF, the US economy would register an economic growth rate of 2.7% in 2018, but that would slow down to 2.5% in 2019. The Chinese economy would register a rate of 6.6% this year, and 6.4% in 2019. As regards Romania, in its “World Economic Outlook”, published in October 2017, the IMF revised the growth rate estimated for Romania in 2018, from 3.4% to 4.4%.



    FLU – A 40-year old woman has died in Botosani, north-eastern Romania, of complications triggered by the flu. This is the third death caused by flu viruses this year in Romania, after a 69 year old woman in Bucharest and a 15-year old boy in Salaj, north-western Romania. The Health Minister Florian Bodog has called on family doctors to continue the anti-flu vaccination campaign this month too, especially of people who are at risk. According to the National Centre for Disease Surveillance and Control, the total number of cases of acute respiratory infections has reached 75,000. Specialists say that, as compared to the same period last season, the total number of ill people is smaller by some 25%.



    AUSTRALIAN OPEN – The pair made up of the Romanian tennis players Irina Begu and Monica Niculescu has qualified for the semifinals of the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam of the year, after a 3 set victory against the US couple Jennifer Brady/Vania King. Next, Begu and Niculescu will take on the Russians Ekaterina Makarova/Elena Vesnina, who won the title in Melbourne back in 2014. On Wednesday, Romanias only representatives in the singles, Simona Halep, takes on Karolina Pliskova of the Czech Republic. Halep is the worlds number one player and also first-seed at the Australian Open.


    (translated by Mihaela Ignatescu)


  • November 3, 2017

    November 3, 2017

    ECONOMIC GROWTH – The National Forecasting Committee has
    revised again, upwards, the forecast regarding Romania’s economic growth in
    2017, from 5.6 to 6.1%. The Committee has maintained the GDP growth estimates
    for 2018, 2019 and 2020 at 5% every year. The International Monetary Fund has
    too revised the forecast regarding the development of Romanian economy, from
    4.2% to 5.5%. According to the IMF, Romania and Iceland will register the
    highest economic growth rates this year. A similar estimate has been presented
    by the World Bank. In another move, specialists draw attention to the fact that
    Romania’s economic growth is mainly triggered by consumption, and that the
    volume of public investment has dropped.








    STRIKE
    – State sector employees are the main victims of the political manipulation by
    means of which the payment of social security contributions has become an
    employee responsibility. This decision will actually annul the 25% salary
    increase, turning it into a political scam, reads a communiqué issued by the
    ‘Solidaritea Sanitara’ (Solidarity for Health) Trade Union Federation.
    According to the federation, a general strike in the budget sector would be a
    normal sanction against the government, which is trying to impose an agenda
    that runs counter to the commitments it had made to the employees. On Thursday,
    another trade union federation, CNSLR Fratia, announced the start of procedures
    for a national strike, also in response to the government’s decision regarding
    social security contributions. This decision has been harshly criticised by
    other unions, as well as by the president and the liberal opposition. In
    response, Prime Minister Mihai Tudose has stated that the measure will benefit
    everybody.












    EU
    COUNCIL     – The presidency of the EU Council, which Romania will be holding in
    2019, will reflect the need for consensus, not political interests, said on
    Thursday the Minister Delegate for European Affairs Victor Negrescu. He
    attended the launch of the guide to the Romanian Presidency of the EU Council, a
    document developed by the European Expertise Centre – Europuls. Victor Negrescu
    has stated that currently there are some 1500 experts preparing for the future presidency. In another
    development, the Minister Delegate for European Affairs will be in London for
    two days to talk with representatives of the Romanian community about the
    Brexit implications. The Foreign Affairs Ministry has launched an information
    clip on this topic. According to the Ministry, there are 328,000 Romanians
    living in Great Britain.










    CATALONIA – On
    Thursday, thousands of Catalans protested against the arrest of eight regional
    ministers, sacked because of their involvement in the attempt to separate
    Catalonia from Spain. They are accused of rebellion, revolt and embezzlement of
    public funds. Prosecutors have requested a European arrest warrant for the
    Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont, who
    is currently in Belgium. Last week, the Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy
    imposed direct rule on Catalonia, dissolved the regional parliament and
    announced local elections to be held on the 21st of December.






    FOOTBALL – Romanian Vice-champions FCSB
    (formerly known as Steaua Bucharest) has qualified to Europa League last 32
    round, following the 1-1 result in Group G against Israeli football team Hapoel
    Beer Sheva on Thursday evening in Bucharest. In the previous match, FCSB
    defeated Hapoel 2-1 away from home. FCSB now has 10 points and heads the group.
    Second comes Viktoria Plzen with 6 points, following the victory against FC
    Lugano of Switzerland. FCSB will play in Group G two more matches against
    Viktoria Plzen on November 23 away and against Lugano on December 7 at home.






    HANDBALL – Romania’s women’s handball champions CSM Bucharest are
    playing on Saturday, on home turf, against the Danish team Nykobing Falster
    Handboldklub, its fourth match in Champions League’s group A. In other matches,
    CSM has defeated the Slovenian team RK Krim Mercator Ljubliana and Vistal
    Gdynia of Poland. In the rankings, the Romanians come first with 4 points, just
    like the Danish, who come second. CSM Bucharest won the Champions League in
    2016 and is one of the first seeds at the current edition of the most powerful
    European inter-club competitions.

  • September 7, 2017 UPDATE

    September 7, 2017 UPDATE

    COMMISSIONER The European Commissioner for Regional Policy, Corina Cretu said in Bucharest on Thursday that Romania could attract by the end of the year one billion euros from development and cohesion funds. The European official has hailed the fact that the month of August saw the accreditation of all the national authorities in charge of the management and control of the 23 billion euro budget earmarked to Romania for the 2014 — 2020 period. The commissioner went on to say that in terms of European funds, Romania has registered delays caused by the slow process of preparing and implementing these projects. The European Commissioner’s statements were made upon the meeting she had with the country’s Prime Minister Mihai Tudose.




    IMF The IMF recommends the Romanian government to aim for a medium-term budget deficit of 1.5% in order to keep public debt at a lower level. The statement was made in Bucharest on Thursday by the IMF representative for Romania, Alejandro Hajdenberg. He added that the positive evoloution of the Romanian economy recently is mostly based on consumption and this tends to cause a higher fiscal deficit. We recall that Romania doesn’t have an agreement with the IMF at present.




    GROWTH Romania has reported the biggest annual economic growth in the EU in the period April-June 2017, thanks to a 5.7% rise, show the new revised estimates published by Eurostat on Thursday. Thus, the GDP reported a 5.7% growth both in the first and second quarters of 2017 as compared to the same period of last year. The data recently published show that Eurostat slightly revised up the estimates regarding the economic growth rate reported annually both in the Euro zone and in the EU.




    MEETING Romania’s Foreign Minister, Teodor Melescanu, is participating on Thursday and Friday in Tallinn, Estonia, in the informal meeting of the foreign ministers of the EU member states, hosted by the Estonian presidency of the EU Council. A Foreign Ministry communiqué shows that the main topics to be approached are the North Korean file and the Middle East peace process, among other things. The EU foreign ministers will discuss with the EU defense ministers about the implementation of the European defense package. Also a meeting will be held with the foreign ministers of candidate countries regarding the prevention and combating of radicalization and violent extremism. The Romanian foreign minister will also meet with Johannes Hahn, the Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations to discuss the developments in the Republic of Moldova.




  • The week in Review, May 1-7

    The week in Review, May 1-7

    The Constitutional Court of Romania rules in the case of people with a criminal sentence


    On Thursday, Romania’s Constitutional Court rejected as inadmissible the Ombudsman’s notification regarding an article in the law that forbids people with a criminal sentence to be members of the Government. The Court decided that, essentially, the reasons invoked in the notification, which was submitted at the beginning of the year, represented both issues related to the application and interpretation of the law by competent public authorities as well as aspects related to lawmaking which are Parliament’s prerogatives. Law no. 90 of 2001 on the organization and functioning of the Government and ministries stipulates that only the persons who have not received a criminal sentence and who are not in a situation of incompatibility can be members of the Government. The Constitutional Court was notified in this regard after, based on this law, the president of the Chamber of Deputies and leader of the Social Democratic Party, Liviu Dragnea, could not be designated prime minister, although his party had won the December 2016 legislative elections by a vast majority of votes. Dragnea received a 2-year suspended sentence in the case of the 2012 referendum on the impeachment of the then president, Traian Băsescu. Liviu Dragnea said however that the Court’s decision did not influence his political career.




    The government’s draft law on pardoning


    The Juridical Committee in Romania’s Senate on Thursday revised Wednesday’s vote and rejected all the amendments to the bill on pardoning certain acts of corruption that could have come under the incidence of this law. According to the amendment adopted on Wednesday, giving and taking bribe and influence peddling were some of the crimes that were to be pardoned on condition the damage was paid off. Thousands of people protested in Bucharest in front of the Government building and in other cities of Romania against these amendments. The protesters accused the corruption of the political class. The government, which initiated the bill on pardoning, as well as the president of the Chamber of Deputies, Liviu Dragnea, said they were against pardoning acts of corruption. Dragnea announced the pardoning bill, which in its final form will not include the pardoning of acts of corruption, would be dealt with in the national executive committee of the Social Democratic Party. The Law on pardoning is seen by its initiators as a possible solution to prison overcrowding. The European Court on Human Rights has called on the Romanian authorities to work out a plan of measures meant to improve conditions in penitentiaries.




    Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanus visit to Israel


    Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu jointly with his Israeli counterpart Benjamin Netanyahu held a press conference in Jerusalem on Thursday during which the Romanian official said that Romania remains a staunch supporter of the counter-terrorist fight. He said the terror attacks in Europe are alarming and recalled that Romanian citizens are also among the victims. On the other hand, given that the two countries have had diplomatic relations for the past 70 years, Prime Minister Grindeanu said that Israel is Romania’s closest ally and partner in the region. In turn, Prime Minister Netanyahu underscored that the visit paid by his Romanian counterpart is a continuation of the great friendship the two countries enjoy. On this occasion, two bilateral documents have been signed: a declaration of intent on cutting international roaming fees and a joint statement on cooperation in fields such as electric power and gas transportation, research, development and innovation, high technologies and investment. The Romanian Prime Minister’s agenda also included talks with President Reruven Rivlin, as well as a visit to the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial. On this occasion Grindeanu reiterated the government’s commitment to setting up a Museum of the Jewish History and Holocaust in Romania. According to him the Romanian authorities have already made available a building in the Bucharest’s historical center to host the museum premises.




    Preparations for Romanias presidency of the EU Council in 2019


    The Foreign Ministry in Bucharest has this week staged a conference on Romania’s upcoming presidency of the EU Council due in the first half of 2019. Romania has the chance of bringing a new dynamic approach to contribute to the renaissance of the European project during its mandate, Romania’s Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu said in his conference address. The head of the Romanian diplomacy, Teodor Melscanu has announced that Romania will be taking measures to step up the integration process of the countries in the Balkans and will stage a summit on the Eastern Partnership during its mandate at the helm of the European Council. Romanian Minister of European Affairs, Ana Birchall has said the EU presidency is a national project for Romania and although the mandate comes at a delicate time, the challenge could be turned into an opportunity.




    Romanians can travel to Canada without a visa


    As of May 1st 2017, Romanian and Bulgarian citizens who in the past ten years have had a visa for the USA can travel to Canada only by filling in a travel authorization form. This was made possible after the European Parliament’s approval in February of the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement with Canada — CETA. This is the first stage of a visa waiver for the Romanian and Bulgarian citizens. Under the agreement signed by the governments of Romania and Canada, visas are to be completely eliminated for all the Romanians as of December 1, 2017.




  • Romania prepares for its first EU Council presidency

    Romania prepares for its first EU Council presidency

    Romania has
    started making preparations for its first EU Council presidency in the first
    six months of 2019. The government in Bucharest has established a national
    council for the preparation and exercise of Romania’s EU Council presidency, an
    action plan has been adopted and the foreign ministry has set up a special unit
    to work on this project. At a debate held on Wednesday by the foreign ministry,
    the participants assessed the context in which Romania will carry out its term,
    which will see new European Parliament elections, the UK’s leaving the European Union and
    negotiations on the next multi-annual financial framework. The Minister
    Delegate for European Affairs Ana Birchall said the presidency of the European
    Union was a national project for Romania.

    Ana Birchall: We will have to ensure a professional management and demonstrate our ability
    to propose compromise solutions that are acceptable for the member states and
    the Union’s institutions. We will have the opportunity to demonstrate our
    support for the European values and contribute directly to the consolidation
    process.


    The Eastern
    Partnership and the organisation of a summit in Romania, the Danube strategy
    and migration to the European Union are some of the issues Romania must cover
    during its presidency, said foreign minister Teodor Melescanu. He also pointed
    out that there are logistical problems related to the taking over of the rotating
    presidency, which would require the support of a number of state institutions,
    given that Romania will have to host hundreds of meetings, which is also an
    opportunity to promote the country’s political vision on the future of Europe.

    Prime minister Sorin Grindeanu too believes Romania has the opportunity to come
    with a new, dynamic approach that could help relaunch the European project
    during its EU Council presidency. According to the senate speaker Calin Popescu
    Tariceanu, Romania will benefit from more exposure during its 6-month
    presidency and must demonstrate that it is creative, energetic, modern and
    pro-European.


    Calin Popescu Tariceanu: Let us not forget that we are the seventh biggest country in the European
    Union so we must try to give our presidency a dimension that befits our country
    – we should neither try to be more than what we are and try to impress, nor see
    ourselves smaller than we are in reality.


    The debate in Bucharest was also attended by the
    ambassadors of Finland and Croatia, which will take over the EU rotating
    presidency after Romania.

  • May 3, 2017 UPDATE

    May 3, 2017 UPDATE


    ORGANISED CRIME – Police and prosecutors with the Directorate Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism (DIICOT) on Wednesday conducted home searches in Bucharest and several counties in Romania, targeting an organised crime group in a case involving the National Freight Railways Corporation. Forty people, including the current and the former managers of the corporation, are suspected of having set up an organised crime group, of aggravated embezzlement, forgery and fraud. The group members allegedly under-appraised in 2016 assets belonging to the company, before selling nearly 2,500 freight cars intended for scrapping. The difference between the actual worth and the under-assessed worth of the goods went, according to the police, into the accounts of a company that collected ferrous scrap metal. As a result, the Corporation incurred losses of over 6.3 million euros.



    PRESS FREEDOM – Press used as a tool of propaganda and the involution of quality journalism are the main characteristics of the Romania media in the past year, reads the latest Active Watch report on press freedom. The main problems identified by the report, published on Wednesday on World Press Freedom Day, are propaganda, public intoxication, disinformation, threats and biased speeches. Journalism is still used abusively by some people in order to intimidate, blackmail or influence peddle, and the serious professional misconduct of some news televisions has triggered reaction on the part of the audience and civil society. According to the report, the former leadership of the public radio started an aggressive campaign against the bill on the separation of the offices of president and director general of the Romanian Radio Broadcasting Corporation. This campaign was sanctioned by the National Audiovisual Council for bias. Also, the leadership of the Romanian Radio Broadcasting Corporation harassed, by means of internal investigations, the radio journalists who notified such cases of misconduct and issued an order establishing restrictions with regard to journalists liberty to report cases of professional and legal misconduct. Previously, a report drawn up by Reports without Borders, published last week, ranked Romania 46th out of 180 countries in the world press freedom index. Romania went up 3 places since last year.



    EU COUNCIL – The Romanian Foreign Ministry organised in Bucharest on Wednesday a conference on the Romanian presidency of the EU Council, in the first half of 2019. Romania has the opportunity to set a new fresh and dynamic pace that would help the rebirth of the European project, said the Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu in his message to the participants in the conference. In turn, the Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu announced that, while holding the six-month presidency of the EU Council, Bucharest will take action to accelerate the integration of the Balkan countries and will organise an eastern partnership summit. The European Affairs Minister Ana Birchall stated that the EU Council presidency is a national project for Romania and, although the times will be difficult, the challenge can be turned into an opportunity.



    BREXIT – Britain will not pay 100 billion euros to leave the EU, the Finance Secretary David Davis said on Wednesday, after British media reported that the EU negotiators had revised their original figures. The new bill, 40 billion euros higher than previous estimates, includes the payment of farming subsidies and administrative fees to the EU. Other elements taken into account are the budget of the UK and the EU investment expenditure. The revision of estimates indicates a tougher position taken by the 27 member states with respect to Britains demands. The EUs chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier presented the priorities for the first stage of negotiations: reaching an agreement on the method of calculation of Britains financial obligations, protecting the rights of the European citizens living in Great Britain and the external borders issue. Michel Barnier did not provide an estimate for the amount that Great Britain should pay to the EU, but stressed the fact that the financial agreement did not entail punishing the country. The date of the official divorce was set for March 29, 2019, unless an extension is agreed on by decision-makers.



    FRENCH ELECTION – According to the latest opinion poll made public on Wednesday, Emanuel Macron, the candidate of the social-liberal civic organisation En Marche!, is very likely to win the second round of the presidential elections to be held in France on Sunday, Le Figaro reports. According to the poll conducted by Ipsos, Macron is supported by 59% of the voters, while Marine Le Pen, running for the National Front, would only get 41%. The on-line poll was run between April 30 – May 1, and covered a representative sample of 13,742 people.



    MOLDOVA – The presence of any troops or military bases headed and controlled by other countries, on the territory of the Republic of Moldova, is against the Constitution, Moldovas Constitutional Court ruled on Tuesday. The president of the Constitutional Court, Alexandru Tănase, explained that although the legislation makes it clear that “the Republic of Moldova does not allow the deployment of foreign military on its territory,” there are still Russian Federation troops in the pro-Russian breakaway region of Transdniester.



    TOURISM – Check-ins in Romanian accommodation units in the first quarter of the year totalled more than 2 million people, up around 11% compared to the same period of 2016, according to data made public on Wednesday by the National Statistics Institute. Most of the foreign tourists came from Europe (76.2% of the total), especially from Germany, Italy, and the UK. Last year the number of foreign tourists was nearly 11% larger than in 2015, namely 2.5 million, a record for the last few decades.



    WRESTLING – The Romanian athlete Andrei Dukov won the silver in the 57-kilo freestyle category, on Tuesday, at the European Wrestling Championships in Novi Sad, Serbia. Defeated in the final by the Georgian-born Azeri Giorgi Edisherashvili, Dukov improved his performance since last year, when he won bronze in the continental championship. Also on Tuesday, on the first day of the competition, the Romanian Alina Vuc won the bronze in the 48 kilogram category, after defeating the Polish Anna Lukasiak. Romania, which has already reached its two medal target for this competition, is taking part in the European Championship in Novi Sad with 14 athletes.