Tag: News from Romania

TALKS — Romanian Defence Minister Mircea Dusa on Tuesday had a telephone conversation with his Canadian counterpart Robert Nicholson, ahead of the summit of NATO Defence Ministers to be held on Thursday in Brussels. According to a Defence Ministry release, Minister Dusa thanked his counterpart for the excellent cooperation between Romania and Canada in the field of defence, which translated into the deployment of Canada’s F-18 squadron to Romania as part of NATO concerted actions to ensure the security of its allies on its eastern borders.

CORRUPTION — Anti-corruption prosecutors on Tuesday called on the Senate leadership to greenlight the arrest of Constitutional Court judge Toni Grebla, wanted for acts of corruption. In another development businessman Adrian Sarbu on Monday evening was placed under a 24-hour arrest, facing allegations of tax evasion, money laundering and embezzlement. The founder of a popular television station in the early 90s, Sarbu was long seen as one of the most influential media tycoons in Romania. Several other people are being investigated in the same case, three of whom have been put under a pre-emptive arrest.

PARTNERSHIP – Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis on Tuesday informed Parliament that the United States called for permission to continue operations to transport human and material resources to and from Afghanistan. Under the agreement, some 250 military will be deployed at Kogalniceanu base. The US has also requested to use Henri Coanda International Airport as an alternative, in the event of unfavourable weather conditions hindering the functionality of Mihail Kogalniceanu airport.

SERBIA — Serbia did not commit genocide against the Croats in the early 1990s during the war that led to the violent break-up of Yugoslavia, the International Court of Justice in the Hague ruled on Tuesday. The Court also decided that neither did Croatia commit any acts of genocide against the Serbian population on its territory or during the 1995 conflict, when Belgrade-backed rebels reclaimed areas. In July 1999, Croatia submitted an appeal to the Court, accusing the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia — whose lawful successor is Serbia at present– of “ethnic cleansing” among the Croat population in Krajina. According to the authorities in Zagreb, the action perpetrated by the Serbian army against the Croats left around 20,000 people dead, 50,000 others wounded, while more than 3,000 people were reported missing. The aftermath also included a tremendous amount of damages. In turn, Serbia also demanded reparations, accusing Croatia of genocide among the Serbs and other ethnic groups.

ENERGY — Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta on Tuesday said the project for the underwater energy transportation cable linking Romania to Turkey was a strategic one, as it can generate a major foreign market for electricity produced in Romania. The project stipulates the installation of an underwater energy transportation cable from Romania to Turkey via the Black Sea, with a capacity of 800 MW and a voltage of 500 KV. The cable is 400 kilometres long and the total investment stands at around 519 million euro.

IMF — The joint IMF, World Bank and European Commission delegation headed by Andrea Schechter is still in Bucharest, for their assessment of the precautionary loan agreement Romania signed with international lenders. The progress of the economic data, progress on privatisations efforts and the Tax Code are high on the agenda of talks, to be held with Romanian officials until February 10. A hot topic on the agenda is the draft law on personal insolvency, against the backdrop of the recent appreciation of the Swiss Franc against the national currency. This is the 10th stand-by agreement Bucharest has signed with the IMF in the last 23 years, and the third one Romania has called for, since the outbreak of the financial crisis in 2009.

RESIGNATION — The Parliament in Bucharest on Tuesday took note of George Maior’s resignation as head of intelligence. According to procedures, the position has to be officially vacated for President Iohannis to make a new appointment, in line with his constitutional prerogatives. Maior has been in that position since 2006, and resigned a week ago, when he levelled harsh criticism at the Constitutional Court’s decision to rule unconstitutional the law on cyber-security, part of a national security package. In another development, on Monday interim director Florian Coldea, Maior’s former deputy, will appear before the intelligence committee in Parliament, after being implicated in several corruption cases by MP Elena Udrea, who is currently under criminal investigation.

MOLDOVA — The Republic of Moldova’s acting Prime Minister Iurie Leanca on Friday will submit to Parliament his government line-up. The media in Chisinau headlines that at present it is not certain whether Leanca will gather the lawfully required number of votes. A mere 42 deputies, liberals and liberal-democrats support Leanca’s candidacy, 9 votes less than the minimum required number. The Liberal Democratic Party and the Democratic Party’s former governing coalition partners, the liberals headed by Moldova’s former president Mihai Ghimpu said they might cast their vote in favour of the future Government, provided they know the names of cabinet members. According to political analysts, the Liberal Party will not agree ministers facing corruption charges or with attitudes hostile to neighbouring Romania. The head of the European Union’s mission to Chisinau Pirkka Papiola has said that Brussels’ support for the Republic of Moldova depends only on the new government’s future course of action, and not on that government’s political leanings. In 2014 Moldova signed association and free-trade agreements with the European Union, where it hopes to gain membership in 2020.

UKRAINE — In the draft budget for 2016 US President Barack Obama has suggested earmarking 117 million dollars to thwart Russia’s ingressions in Ukraine, the United States Presidential Administration has announced. The draft budget also includes initiatives of political, economic and military support for NATO allies and partner states in Europe, the release also reads. Meanwhile clashes continue on the ground between separatist rebels and government troops in Eastern Ukraine. According to Ukrainian police, at least 112 civilians have been killed in January — the deadliest month since the outbreak of the conflict, in March 2014. The United Nations has estimated that the conflict in Eastern Ukraine has left more than 5,000 people dead.

SNOWSTORM – At least 10 people have been killed by the snowstorm that hit the north-eastern USA for the second time in less than a week. The bad weather has caused severe traffic disruptions, 4,400 flights have been grounded mainly on airports in Chicago, Newark, Boston and New York. Schools and courts have been closed down on Monday in Boston, covered in a 60-centimeter snow layer last week. The National Weather Service has cautioned the inhabitants of Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Rhode Island and Connecticut to brace up for yet another storm expected to blanket the region with up to 30 centimetres of snow.

TOURISTS — Some 2 million tourists visited Romania last year, of which more than a half from Europe. The average length of their stay was 2 days, according to data released by the National Institute of Statistics. Most tourists were from Germany, tantamount to a quarter of a million. Over 180,000 visited Bucharest and other large cities. Up to 200,000 tourists came from Italy, France, the United States, Grate Britain and Hungary.

UKRAINE — Romania supports taking fresh sanctions on Russia and separatist rebels in eastern Ukraine, unless real progress is reported on the ground and at the negotiations table, Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu said on Friday. The Romanian official attended the meeting of EU Foreign Ministers in Brussels. EU officials decided to extend the current sanctions on Moscow until September, also adding new names on the list of Ukrainian and Russian nationals who are banned from entering community space. In another development, tens of people, mostly civilians, were killed on Thursday and Friday in clashes between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian rebels. Over 5,000 people have been killed since the conflict broke out in April 2014.

TALKS — Romanian Defence Minister Mircea Dusa and his German counterpart Ursula von der Leyen on Friday had a telephone conversation. The agenda for talks focused on the security developments on NATO’s eastern flank, against the backdrop of the armed conflict in Ukraine and ahead of NATO’s ministerial meeting scheduled for next week in Brussels. Also the two officials highlighted the importance of top-level political and military dialogue between Bucharest and Berlin, the Defence Ministry reports.

ARRESTS — MP Elena Udrea, a former Regional Development and Tourism Minister and a presidential candidate on behalf of the People’s Movement Party in opposition in the November 2014 elections announced on Friday she filed a complaint with the National Anti-Corruption Directorate against Prosecutor General Laura Kovesi and Romanian Intelligence Service interim chief Florin Coldea. Udrea told HotNews.ro news agency that she lobbied with Social-Democrat Prime Minister Victor Ponta to appoint Kovesi at the helm of the Directorate. In addition, Udrea is accusing Coldea for asking her former husband, Dorin Cocos, some 500 thousand euros to support a private television station controlled by businessman Sebastian Ghita, a former Social Democrat MP. The statements follow after on Thursday anti-corruption prosecutors launched criminal investigations against Udrea in the so-called Microsoft case, also investigating other former Ministers and businessmen, including her ex husband. Udrea is accused of having obtained undue benefits from illegal activities.

SWISS FRANC – After talks with commercial banks, Romania’s Central Bank governor, Mugur Isarescu on Friday announced the Central Bank had accepted the conversion of credits from Swiss francs into the local currency at the present exchange rate. The Bank also stands for individual solutions to this crisis not for general ones. Isarescu’s statement comes against debates triggered by the latest historic appreciation of the franc against the euro after the Swiss Central Bank decided to eliminate the exchange cap. The move has affected 75 thousand Romanians with credits in the Swiss currency.

NATO — Romania is one of the six East-European countries where NATO will be deploying minor forces, Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced on Friday. NATO will also be deploying troops in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland and Bulgaria. These countries will be key to linking national and NATO forces. Next week NATO is due to announce the countries that will contribute several thousands of military who will be trained and deployed on NATO’s Eastern Borders, Stoltenberg has announced. We recall that NATO decided to set up a rapid response force in Eastern Europe to cope with Russia’ ingressions in Ukraine.

CELEBRATION — Great Britain on Friday marked 50 years since the funeral ceremony of Winston Churchill, ‘The Old Lion’ who dared defy Adolf Hitler. Churchill passed way on January 24, 1965 in London, at the age of 90 years. His funeral took place on January 30, was attended by Queen Elizabeth and leaders from 100 nations. Broadcast live, the ceremony was televised to 350 million viewers worldwide. Winston Churchill left behind a free, safe and proud country, for which we should be forever grateful, British Prime Minister David Cameron has said.

GOVERNMENT IN ATHENS — The new Greek Government will not cooperate with the country’s international lenders and will not observe its austerity program, Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis has told Eurogroup president Jeroen Dijsselbloem, who’s paying an official visit to Athens. In turn, the EU official said Greece must observe the terms of the current agreement with the Eurozone, adding that a unilateral decision in this respect would impact progress reported so far. We recall that Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, the leader of the radical left-wing Syriza party, won last week’s elections, promising he would renounce austerity measures and re-negotiate Greece’s huge outstanding foreign debt.

IMF — A new joint mission of the IMF, the European Commission and the World Bank is in Bucharest to assess Romania’s ongoing precautionary agreement with its lenders. IMF officials will discuss with Romanian authorities the recent evolutions of the economy and the key priorities of economic reform. The mission comes at a difficult time for Romania, still gripped by the Swiss Franc crisis, causing panic to spread among Romanians with loans in the Swiss currency and prompting heated debates regarding the law on personal insolvency. IMF experts have already submitted a letter to Romanian authorities, expressing their concern regarding the potential risks of adopting such a law in the absence of an appropriate impact study and without consulting all stakeholders.

HOLOCAUST — Holocaust survivors, heads of state and government and representatives of Royal Houses worldwide are today attending a ceremony in Auschwitz, southern Poland, marking 70 years since the shutdown of the death camp here, against the backdrop of rising anti-Semite threats at European level. Attending, among others, are French president Francois Hollande, German president Joachim Gauck and Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko. Also today president Klaus Iohannis will be decorating several Holocaust survivors as part of a ceremony in Bucharest. According to a presidency press release, the distinction will be bestowed as a sign of deep respect for the suffering endured during the Second World War. In Sighet, north-western Romania, a moment of silence will be observed at the Memorial House hosting the Jewish Culture Museum, in memory of the Holocaust victims.

TALKS — Moldovan President Nicolae Timofti has summoned parliamentary parties for talks regarding the designation of the new Prime Minister. Attending the talks are representatives of the Liberal-Democratic Party and the Democratic Party, the Communist Party and the Liberal Party. The Socialist Party declined the offer to submit a nomination. The appointed candidate and his Cabinet will subsequently need Parliament’s vote of confidence, more exactly at least 51 of the total 101 seats. The Liberal-Democrats and the Democrats on Friday announced they had agreed on the future coalition without the Liberals’ participation. The two parties have nominated the acting Prime Minister Liberal-Democrat Iurie Leanca as their nomination for the position of Prime Minister.

CONVICTION — Two former economy and telecommunications ministers, Codrut Seres and Zsolt Nagy have today received definite prison sentences in the so-called strategic privatisation case. Seres will serve four years and eight months while Nagy has been sentenced to four years in prison. The two were found guilty of being part of a cross-border organized crime group and treason by disclosing confidential information. In another development, businessman Dan Voiculescu, who is currently serving a ten-year prison sentence, got his sentence confirmed in another investigation regarding an illegal privatisation. One of the most influential people of the past 25 years in Romania, Voiculescu is a former Securitate informer and the de facto leader of the Conservative Party in the ruling coalition.

TENNIS — Romanian tennis player WTA 3rd-ranked Simona Halep today lost to Ekaterina Makarova of Russia, 4-6, 0-6 in the Australian Open quarterfinals. The Russian player will next play Maria Sharapova. In the men’s doubles, Florin Mergea and Dominic Inglot of Britain will take on Horia Tecau of Romania and Jean-Julien Rojer of the Netherlands. Mergea and Inglot produced a big surprise in the round of 16 after knocking out defending world champions Bob and Mike Bryan of the United States.

UKRAINE — Nine military have been killed and 29 wounded in the last 24 hours in Eastern Ukraine, where fighting has escalated between pro-Russian rebels and the Ukrainian army. The OSCE has accused separatists of sabotaging its mission in the area. Secretary General Zamberto Zannier has said that OSCE observers have assumed the mission of the ‘blue helmets’ without having the proper equipment. In another development, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin has said that authorities in Kiev are still clinging to the idea of putting the US at the table of OSCE-mediated negotiations between Russia and Ukraine regarding the political situation in the Donbas region.

GREECE — The new Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, the leader of the radical left-wing Syriza party, is due to announce today the structure of his new Cabinet, set up jointly with the independents. Tsipras won Sunday’s elections and is planning to introduce an anti-austerity program. The priorities of the new Government are to reduce the country’s debt and economic strategies. The IMF has expressed willingness to continue its support for Greece and kick off talks with the new Government, France Presse reports. In 2010 Greece got 240 billion euros as part of a loan granted by the European Union, the World Bank and the IMF. The IMF earmarked its greatest loan to Athens, although grounded on harsh economic reforms. At present Greece has an outstanding debt of 300 billion euros, accounting for 175% of its GDP, and an unemployment rate of 25%.

BLIZZARD — Tens of millions of people in the US are bracing for a powerful blizzard set to hit the East Coast. Meteorologists say this may be the biggest and most dangerous blizzard in the history of the region. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent on the ground, authorities in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Rhode Island and Massachusetts have declared a state of emergency. Thousands of flights have been grounded, while all traffic on motorways, bridges, tunnels and the New York subway has been shut down. The authorities expect the massive snowstorm to blanket the region with up to 90 centimetres of snow.

DNA — One of the nine judges of the Constitutional Court of Romania, Toni Grebla, is being investigated for influence peddling and organized crime, the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA) announced on Thursday. According to the Directorate, Grebla is suspected of having received undue benefits from a businessman in the 2010-2015 period. In turn Grebla allegedly promised to abuse his office to help several public servants favour companies controlled by the businessman. In another development, the High Court of Cassation and Justice greenlighted the Directorate’s request to place Former Interior Minister Liberal Cristian David under a pre-emptive 30-day arrest, pending the investigation of bribe-taking allegations. David is suspected of having received bribes of up to 500 thousand eurpos in the 2007-2008 period. David purportedly also used his influence to convince a local county council president, who was arrested in another court case, to issue a property title for a 15-hectare plot of land. Also on Thursday, former Social-Democrat MP Viorel Hrebenciuc and his son, Andrei Hrebenciuc, as well as Social-Democrat MP Ioan Adam, former Justice Minister Tudor Chiuariu and another 13 people were brought to court by anti-corruption prosecutors, in a notorious court case regarding illegal restitution of forestland. They are being accused of setting up a crime ring in April 2013. The case regards the restitution of over 43 thousand hectares of forestland in Bacau County, based on illegal decisions issued by certain judges, also involving certain MPs. The prejudice brought to the state is more than 300 million euros.

IMF – Romania’s Energy Minister Andrei Gerea is holding preliminary talks with IMF officials in Bucharest. High on the talks’ agenda is the timetable for the stock exchange listing of some of the companies subordinate to the Energy Ministry. The IMF’s official mission will be in Bucharest over January 27-February 10, for a new assessment of the existing stand-by agreement. As part of the meeting with Romanian officials and representatives of the private sector, trade unions, business enterprise associations as well as with representatives of political parties and civil society, talks will also focus on economic developments and the priorities of the structural reforms. IMF’s last visit to Bucharest was in December 2014, when key elements were agreed upon, underlying the budget structure for 2015.

TALKS — Three-way talks will continue on Friday in Chisinau, bringing together the pro-European parties, the Liberal Democratic Party, the Liberal Party and the Democratic Party, in an attempt to set up a coalition capable of forming the new government, in the wake of the legislative elections held in November last year. Negotiations failed on Thursday and Wednesday, despite recommendations made by the European politicians who had been holding talks in Chisinau with the leaders of the three parties. The Party of the Communists, in opposition, announced it would in no way join a governing coalition, while the socialists, who received the greatest number of votes in favour in the most recent election, have suggested denouncing the association agreement with the European Union. Moldovan Parliament’s plenary session on Wednesday turned down the initiative.

MEETING — US Secretary of State John Kerry and British Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond re co-chairing the meeting of the Coalition Against the Islamic State, the terror organization controlling large areas in Syria and Iraq. Foreign Ministers from 20 countries are attending the meeting. Talks are set to focus on the military campaign against IS targets, means of preventing recruitment of militants, blocking sources of financing for the organization, and humanitarian assistance in the region. A special focus will be on westerners who travel to the Middle East to join the Islamists, in the context of the terror attacks in Paris.

PRESSURE — Constitutional Court president Augustin Zegrean on Thursday complained about pressure from politicians and institutions regarding the cyber security legislation, which the Constitutional Court sees as going against the Constitution. On Wednesday, the Court ruled that the Law on Cyber Security is unconstitutional. According to the Law, the so-called “Big Brother” package is in breach of the free access to justice and the right to a fair trial, the right to privacy, family and personal live as well as the right to secret post. The law on cyber security, put forth by the Government, was adopted in December 2014 by the Senate, after being tacitly steered through the Chamber of Deputies.

UKRAINE – Violence has escalated to the level prior to the Minsk ceasefire concluded in September 2014 and even beyond it, head of U.S. European Command and NATO Supreme Allied Commander Philip Breedlove At least 41 people were killed in the last 24 hours in Ukraine’s Russian-speaking eastern region, 10 of whom were Ukrainian soldiers, France Presse reports. The Ukrainian army on Thursday morning abandoned Donetsk airport’s new terminal, their main stronghold, to fight against pro-Russian separatist forces, France Presse also reports. As of January 15, rebels, who seized part of the airport’ s buildings, have launched a strong offensive, in a bid to regain control over the positions last held by the Ukrainian army. President Petro Poroshenko has said that more than 9,000 Russian soldiers, with more than 500 tanks, heavy artillery weapons and carriers have been deployed in eastern Ukraine. The allegations mark an absolute first since the Minsk agreement has been signed in September last year. According to OSCE, since April 2014, more than 5,000 people, civilians and military, have been killed in clashes between Ukrainian forces and pro-Russian rebels.

ECB — The European Central Bank (ECB) on Thursday announced new quantitative easing methods worth 1,100 billion Euros, aimed at preventing the stagnation of the Eurozone economy. ECB president Mario Draghi announced a plan of monthly procurements mixed by sovereign bonds from Eurozone countries and corporatist bonds up to 60 billion euros, from March 2015 to September 2016. The measures are aimed at preventing the 18 Eurozone countries from entering recession. The procurement of sovereign bonds will also lower the costs of taking out loans for Eurozone states, as well as support lending and result in a devaluation of the Euro, making it more competitive on the market.

CYBER CRIME — The frequency of cyber attacks in Romania has gone up in the second half of December, the same as everywhere else in the world, the Romanian Intelligence Service reports. Overall, the purpose of these attacks was to promote Islamist or anti-Semitic propaganda. In Romania, several websites of universities, public administration institutions but also corporations have been targeted by cyber attacks. Hackers have also attacked the websites of the Romanian Patriarchy, replacing its content with pro-Muslim messages and attacks on the French state. According to the Romanian Intelligence Service, the attacks are more often than not afterthoughts of conflicts and events worldwide, while the beginning of 2015 has been marked by a surge of terrorism in Europe.

SWISS FRANC — Romanian Finance Minister Darius Valcov and Governor of the National Bank of Romania Mugur Isarescu are looking for solutions to the Swiss franc crisis, after the exchange rate against the Leu reached a new historic high on Friday, standing at 4.42 lei. A potential solution refers to the rescheduling of loan payments for people with low incomes, so that they may be allowed to pay a lower rate for two years. After this period expires, the state would then step in to cover part of the costs by means of tax breaks. Another solution would be that banks should lower interest rates for loans in the Swiss franc. Some 75,000 Romanians have loans in Swiss francs. Six banks own some 90% of the total number of loans. The recent decision of the National Bank of Switzerland to lift the 1.20-per-euro cap on the Swiss currency has resulted in massive losses for banks all around the world.

ICC — The United States has condemned the decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to open a preliminary investigation into the alleged war crimes committed in 2014 in the Palestinian territories. The US State Department sees as ironic the fact that Israel should be held accountable, given that thousands of missiles were fired at the time targeting its territory. In turn, Israel finds the ruling ‘outrageous’. Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman says Israel will not cooperate with this investigation. In July 2014, the Israeli army has unleashed a large-scale military offensive on the Gaza Strip in response to the missile attacks of the Palestinian group Hamas. At the end of August, Israel and Hamas signed an indefinite ceasefire agreement, thus putting an end to over 50 days of war, which left 2,000 Palestinians and 71 Israeli dead, mostly military.

THREAT — Belgian authorities are on high alert, with hundreds of military deployed on the streets, after thwarting a terrorist plot to police officers. Five people are facing terrorism charges following a shoot-out in Verviers, eastern Belgium on Thursday. France is also seeing a massive deployment of military and police officers in an attempt to cope with the high number of terrorist threats. On Friday, the French police withheld several people suspected of having helped the perpetrators of last week’s terrorist attacks in the French capital. Investigators in both countries continue to look for suspects who might be linked with the attacks in Paris or with the attempted assassination of Belgian police officers. Authorities in Brussels claim there is no direct connection between the attacks in France and the terrorist plot in Belgium.

CVM – Romanian Justice Minister Robert Cazanciuc claims Romania will have a positive report from the European Commission under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (CVM) for the second year in a row. According to Cazanciuc, the soon-to-be-released report proves that Romania has an independent judiciary and institutions that enforce the law. Romania is also a good example of best practices in the field, Cazanciuc also said. The Romanian official said he would discuss with Commission officials about the report on Monday and Tuesday during his visit to Brussels. Efforts to combat corruption and the reform of the judiciary have been monitored under the CVM since 2006.

UKRAINE — Heavy fighting broke out on Saturday on Donetsk airport in Estern Ukraine, as pro-Russian separatists tried to break through the blockade of Government forces and take over part of the airport facilities. Three Ukrainian military were killed, Reuters reports. The UN Security Council will convene on January 21, at the initiative of Lithuania. The meeting is devoted to the developments in Ukraine, as violence has surged in conflict areas over the last few days.

BANKING — Two Greek banks have request access to the emergency facility of the Central Bank of Greece in Athens, due to massive capital withdrawals from the population. Over the recent period, more and more Greeks have been withdrawing their savings for fear they might lose it, in the context that the snap elections of January 25 might result in the radical left-wing coming to power. Over the last months, loans have soared dramatically, reaching several 45 billion euros. According to economic pundits, the emergency financing line of the Central Bank is due to be accessed by other local banks as well.

COMPENSATION — A US Muslim detained for two weeks without being charged for the 9/11 attacks will receive a compensation of 385,000 dollars from the US Government and a federal agent, a human rights association has announced. Abdullah al-Kidd was withheld in 2003 as ‘a key witness’, a term the US Government uses to secure the willingness of suspects in order to testify in terrorism court cases. The US Muslim was detained for 16 days in harsh circumstances, then placed under judicial control for 15 months. Over this period he wasn’t accused of any crime or deposed in court.

CYBER CRIME — The frequency of cyber attacks in Romania has gone up in the second half of December, the same as everywhere else in the world, the Romanian Intelligence Service reports. Overall, the purpose of these attacks was to promote Islamist or anti-Semitic propaganda. In Romania, several websites of universities, public administration institutions but also corporations have been targeted by cyber attacks. Hackers have also attacked the websites of the Romanian Patriarchy, replacing its content with pro-Muslim messages and attacks on the French state. According to the Romanian Intelligence Service, the attacks are more often than not afterthoughts of conflicts and events worldwide, while the beginning of 2015 has been marked by a surge of terrorism in Europe.

SWISS FRANC — Romanian Finance Minister Darius Valcov and Governor of the National Bank of Romania Mugur Isarescu are looking for solutions to the Swiss franc crisis, after the exchange rate against the Leu reached a new historic high on Friday, standing at 4.42 lei. A potential solution refers to the rescheduling of loan payments for people with low incomes, so that they may be allowed to pay a lower rate for two years. After this period expires, the state would then step in to cover part of the costs by means of tax breaks. Another solution would be that banks should lower interest rates for loans in the Swiss franc. Some 75,000 Romanians have loans in Swiss francs. Six banks own some 90% of the total number of loans. The recent decision of the National Bank of Switzerland to lift the 1.20-per-euro cap on the Swiss currency has resulted in massive losses for banks all around the world.

ICC — The United States has condemned the decision of the International Criminal Court (ICC) to open a preliminary investigation into the alleged war crimes committed in 2014 in the Palestinian territories. The US State Department sees as ironic the fact that Israel should be held accountable, given that thousands of missiles were fired at the time targeting its territory. In turn, Israel finds the ruling ‘outrageous’. Israeli Foreign Minister Avigdor Lieberman says Israel will not cooperate with this investigation. In July 2014, the Israeli army has unleashed a large-scale military offensive on the Gaza Strip in response to the missile attacks of the Palestinian group Hamas. At the end of August, Israel and Hamas signed an indefinite ceasefire agreement, thus putting an end to over 50 days of war, which left 2,000 Palestinians and 71 Israeli dead, mostly military.

THREAT — Belgian authorities are on high alert, with hundreds of military deployed on the streets, after thwarting a terrorist plot to police officers. Five people are facing terrorism charges following a shoot-out in Verviers, eastern Belgium on Thursday. France is also seeing a massive deployment of military and police officers in an attempt to cope with the high number of terrorist threats. On Friday, the French police withheld several people suspected of having helped the perpetrators of last week’s terrorist attacks in the French capital. Investigators in both countries continue to look for suspects who might be linked with the attacks in Paris or with the attempted assassination of Belgian police officers. Authorities in Brussels claim there is no direct connection between the attacks in France and the terrorist plot in Belgium.

CVM – Romanian Justice Minister Robert Cazanciuc claims Romania will have a positive report from the European Commission under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (CVM) for the second year in a row. According to Cazanciuc, the soon-to-be-released report proves that Romania has an independent judiciary and institutions that enforce the law. Romania is also a good example of best practices in the field, Cazanciuc also said. The Romanian official said he would discuss with Commission officials about the report on Monday and Tuesday during his visit to Brussels. Efforts to combat corruption and the reform of the judiciary have been monitored under the CVM since 2006.

UN — The UN Security Council is due to convene on January 21, at the initiative of Lithuania. The meeting will be devoted to the crisis in Ukraine, which has took a turn for the worse in the conflict area. New violence was reported on Friday in the pro-Russian east, when 11 people were killed. US president Barack Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron both argued for ‘the need to maintain firm sanctions on Russia’, a country they accuse of supplying armed forces to separatist militias, an allegation Moscow has dismissed. Since April 2014, over 4,800 people, civilians and military, have been killed in the conflicts between Ukrainian security forces and pro-Russian rebels in Eastern Ukraine.

BANKING — Two Greek banks have request access to the emergency facility of the Central Bank of Greece in Athens, due to massive capital withdrawals from the population. Over the recent period, more and more Greeks have been withdrawing their savings for fear they might lose it, in the context that the snap elections of January 25 might result in the radical left-wing coming to power. Over the last months, loans have soared dramatically, reaching several 45 billion euros. According to economic pundits, the emergency financing line of the Central Bank is due to be accessed by other local banks as well.

COMPENSATION — A US Muslim detained for two weeks without being charged for the 9/11 attacks will receive a compensation of 385,000 dollars from the US Government and a federal agent, a human rights association has announced. Abdullah al-Kidd was withheld in 2003 as ‘a key witness’, a term the US Government uses to secure the willingness of suspects in order to testify in terrorism court cases. The US Muslim was detained for 16 days in harsh circumstances, then placed under judicial control for 15 months. Over this period he wasn’t accused of any crime or deposed in court.

NATO — NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg today hailed the contribution of Romanian military to allied operations in Afghanistan and Kosovo. Upon meeting with president Klaus Iohannis in Brussels, the NATO official labelled Romania a strong ally, hailing Bucharest authorities’ decision to earmark 2% of the GDP to the country’s defence. In turn, president Iohannis said that against the backdrop of the crisis in Ukraine, NATO should re-assert its solidarity by means of firm actions. Iohannis called for what he has termed ”continuous support” from NATO to countries in its eastern vicinity, including Ukraine, Moldova and Georgia. In Brussels president Iohannis also talked with European Council president Donald Tusk, European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker. The message the president conveyed was that Romania can and should be part of Schengen.

MEETING — French president Francois Hollande on Friday offered US Secretary of State John Kerry to ‘find together the right answers’ after last week’s jihadist attacks in Paris, France Presse reports. In turn, John Kerry paid tribute to the 17 people killed last week and conveyed a message of support for the French people. The French media writes this is a tardy homage, after no US representative was present in last Sunday’s solidarity march in Paris, which brought together over 50 heads of state and government from all over the world. At the time the White House claimed the president could not attend due to the high security risk. John Kerry was the first US official to express solidarity and compassion in the French language shortly after the attacks on the headquarters of Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine on January 7.

CAP LIFTED — Asian stock markets were slightly lower on Friday after the National Bank of Switzerland surprisingly lifted the 1.20-per-euro cap on the Swiss currency, which resulted in a 30% hike of the franc. The Swiss franc this morning was valued close to a euro on Asian markets. Shares also soared on Central and East-European markets, to the extent that the Romanian Leu and the Hungarian Forint hit historical lows as against the Swiss franc, Bloomberg reports. Over 150,000 Romanians have loans taken out in Swiss currency.

TERRORIST ATTACKS — Authorities in Belgium have raised the terrorist threat level to a maximum after a large-scale counter-terrorist operation deployed at national level. In Verviers, eastern Belgium, two members of a jihadist terrorist cell plotting a major terrorist attack have been killed by the police, while a third one has been taken into custody. According to our Brussels correspondent, the police say the three had recently returned from Syria and had close connections with the Yemen division of Al-Qaeda. The three allegedly knew the terrorists who last week killed 17 people in Paris. Over the night, hundreds of homes were searched in Brussels, with one armed man arrested by a subway entrance. The police continue to search homes looking for terrorists in France as well as Germany.

JUDICIARY — Romanian Justice Minister Robert Cazanciuc today told Radio Romania that our country will have a positive report from the European Commission under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism (CVM) for the second year in a row. According to Cazanciuc, the soon-to-be-released report proves that Romania has an independent judiciary and institutions that enforce the law. Romania is also a good example of best practices in the field, Cazanciuc also said. The Romanian official said he would discuss with Commission officials about the report on Monday and Tuesday during his visit to Brussels. Efforts to combat corruption and the reform of the judiciary have been monitored under the CVM since 2006.

TENNIS — Romanian tennis player WTA 3rd ranked Simona Halep will take on Karin Knapp of Italy in the opening round of the Australian Open, the first Grand Slam tournament of the year, which is due to kick off on Monday. Last year Halep made it to the quarterfinals. In other news from tennis, the pair made up of Romanian Horia Tecau and Jean-Julien Rojer of the Netherlands has qualified to the doubles final of the ATP tournament in Sydney, totalling 439,405 dollars in prize money. On Friday, the pair edged out Robert Lindstedt of Sweden and Marcin Matkowski of Poland. Another Romanian player Florin Mergea and his team mate Domonic Inglot has qualified to the doubles final of the ATP tournament in Auckland, New Zealand, offering 464,490 dollars in prize money, after knocking out Marcelo Melo of Brazil and Max Mirnyi of Berlarus.

OSCAR NOMINATIONS — Alejandro González Ińárritu’s Birdman and The Grand Budapest Hotel by US filmmaker Wes Anderson got the most nominations, 9 each, for the 87th edition of the Oscar Awards. The two comedies thus outperformed The Imitation Game and Boyhood, another two important films, the latter being the favourite for the best film award. Julianne Moore, Reese Witherspoon, Felicity Jones, Marion Cotillard and Rosamund Pike will compete for the best actress award, while Steve Carell, Bradley Cooper, Benedict Cumberbatch, Michael Keaton and Eddie Redmayne have been nominated for best actor. The Oscar Awards Gala will be held on February 22 in Hollywood.

VISIT — Romanian president Klaus Iohannis on Wednesday is receiving US Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Victoria Nuland in Bucharest. According to a presidency release, talks will focus on consolidating the Strategic Partnership, stepping up economic cooperation and security in Europe. Nuland’s previous visit to Bucharest was in January 2014, as part of her tour of Europe. Also on Wednesday, British Foreign Secretary Phillip Hammond will meet with president Iohannis and his counterpart Bogdan Aurescu. This year Romania marks 135 years of British-Romanian diplomatic relations. Aurescu and Hammond will discuss the strategic partnership between the two countries, intensifying and diversifying economic cooperation, energy security, free movement, EU Enlargement policies and relations with the Western Balkans.

THREAT – The authorities in France say the terrorist threat is still extremely present and in order to defuse that threat they ordered the deployment of nearly 18 thousand army and police troops to guard sensitive sites across the country in the wake of last week’s terrorist attacks. Security forces were sent on Monday to guard more than 700 Jewish schools in France. The country’s Prime Minister Manuel Valls said that a phone tapping system should be developed, while radical Islamists suspected of recruiting attackers should be sent to prisons. Manuel Valls explained that 1,400 French Jihadists are part of the networks that sent recruits to Syria and Iraq, including the perpetrators of last week’s attack against satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

AGREEMENT – Romanian president Klaus Iohannis and representatives of the political groups in the Romanian Parliament on Tuesday signed a national agreement for increasing the country’s defence budget. In the wake of yesterday’s talks, the participants agreed that for the following 10 years beginning 2017, at least 2% of the GDP be earmarked to national defence projects. Iohannis explained the necessity of such an agreement as Europe and NATO are currently facing a major security challenge in the wake of Russia’s annexation of Crimea.

SECURITY — One of the consequences of the tragic events in Paris is the need to strengthen international cooperation with a view to combating terrorism, Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu told Radio Romania on Tuesday. On January 19, Aurescu will attend the Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Brussels, where EU foreign ministers are to discuss the best was to respond to terrorist threats. In addition, in February Washington will host an international summit aimed at identifying means to fight violent extremism at global level. Bogdan Aurescu also expressed hope that terrorist treats should not lead to a cap on freedom of movement for EU citizens, in the context that some European Interior Ministers have called for harsher border controls in Schengen border crossings. We recall that 17 people were killed last week in Paris, journalists with the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine, police officers and civilians. The three perpetrators have been killed.

INVESTMENT – Foreign direct investment in Romania stood at 2.1 billion euros in the first 11 months of 2014, 11% lower than in the same period last year, data released by Romania’s central bank have revealed. According to the bank, November saw the biggest monthly increase in FDI, which was 531 million euros, while the lowest investment was registered in January, only 38 million euros. The same central bank communiqué says that the current account deficit of Romania’s balance of payments dropped by 62% in 2014 down to 302 million euros.

CONSULTATIONS — Socialist MPs in the Republic of Moldova have called on president Nicolae Timofti to dissolve Parliament and call for snap elections, given that the three pro-European parties, the Liberal Party, the Democratic Part and the Liberal-Democratic Party have failed to reach an agreement with respect to setting up a governing coalition after the parliamentary elections of November 30. The Socialists made their request during consultations president Timofti kicked off on Tuesday with parliamentary factions with a view to appointing a new Prime Minister. Consultations will continue over the course of this week. Once appointed, the new Prime Minister has 15 days to assemble his Cabinet. If the new Cabinet fails to obtain Parliament’s vote of confidence twice, the President will dissolve Parliament and call snap elections.

TENNIS — Romanian tennis player Horia Teacu and his Dutch teammate Jean Julien Rojer have today made it into the men’s double semifinals of the Sydney ATP tournament, an event with nearly 440 thousand dollars prize money up for grabs. Tecau and Rojer secured a 6-2, 7-6 win against the all-Australian pair made of James Duckworth and Chris Guccione. The tournament’s number two favorites, Tecau and Rojer will next be taking on German-American pair made up of Benjamin Becker and Nicholas Monroe, respectively. In a separate development, the main favorite to winning the ATP tournament in Sydney Simona Halep, announced he withdrew from competition, because of a stomach flu. In the eighth final on Tuesday Halep was supposed to be taking on Karolina Pliskova of the Czech republic. The Romanian tennis player gets ready for the year’s first Grand Slam event, the Australian Open in Melbourne, due to kick off on January 19th. We recall that last year in Melbourne Halep had to leave the competition as early as the quarterfinals.

TERRORIST ATTACK — Thursday was a national mourning day in France, in the memory of the victims of Wednesday’s terrorist attack on the headquarters of the Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine. A moment of silence was observed at noon in all public institutions. A total of 12 people, mostly journalists, but also 2 police officers were killed, and another 11 were wounded. Two of the attackers are still at large, while the third is now in police custody. President Francois Hollande has labelled the attack as a barbaric act of terrorism. Muslim leaders in France have condemned the attack and warned the population against extremist attempts to manipulate public opinion. In Paris and other large cities, but also in cities across Europe, the United States and Canada anti-terrorism protests were staged, with journalists’ associations describing the attack as “a black day for the freedom of the press”. The international community has harshly condemned the attack, with most Western powers raising their anti-terrorist alert levels.

REACTIONS — Romania firmly condemns terrorism and all violence targeting the freedom of the press and democratic values, Bucharest authorities have announced in the wake on Wednesday’s terrorist attack on Charlie Hebdo weekly in Paris. President Klaus Iohannis, Prime Minister Victor Ponta and other Romanian officials on Thursday signed the book of condolences opened at the French Embassy in Bucharest. Numerous heads of state and government all around the world have condemned the attack. In another development, the Romanian Intelligence Service has announced there are no terrorist threats at present in Romania, and there is no need to raise the alert levels.

VISIT – Romanian president Klaus Iohannis has reiterated his intention to pay a first visit in his new capacity to the Republic of Moldova, an ex-soviet country with a Romanian-speaking majority. Iohannis said he wanted to underline in this way the special relation between Bucharest and Chisinau and encourage the pro-European parties to forge a new government. In November, right after being elected president, Iohannis met in Chisinau the pro-western leaders at that time in full legislative election campaign. The Liberal Democratic Party, the Democratic Party and the Liberals have mustered 55 out of the 101 MP seats. Chisinau hopes to get the EU accession candidacy in 2017 and become an EU member in 2020.

ARMED ATTACK — Interior French Minister Bernard Cazeneuve on Thursday called to national unity after Wednesday’s terrorist attack on Charlie Hebdo satirical magazine in Paris. The French official added that all available police units have been mobilized, with the authorities having taken exceptional measures, such as monitoring the transport system, of large retail stores. In addition the French authorities have temporarily suspended classes in some schools. The minister also said that the perpetrator of Thursday’s attack that killed a police officer in Montrouge, southern Paris, has been apprehended. Minister Cazeneuve went on to say that there was no link between this attack and the one on Wednesday. In another development, a series of explosions were reported in 3 mosques in northern, southern and southwestern France, with no victims reported.

IMF — Romania can negotiate an agreement similar to the one Poland has signed with the IMF, with a flexible line of credit, or may choose not to conclude any further agreements, Prime Minister Victor Ponta on Thursday told a Finance Ministry press conference. According to PM Ponta, a decision in that respect will be taken after the current precautionary agreement comes to an end in September. This is Romania’s 10th agreement with the IMF over the last 23 years, and the third Bucharest has signed with international lenders since the economic crisis of 2009. The flexible line of credit is an instrument the IMF has set up in 2009 for countries with good economic performances.

SESSION — Romanian Interior Minister Gabriel Oprea has summoned the Strategic Interministeral Task Force for combating microcrime and the Committee for Emergency Special Situations in an emergency session on Friday. According to a Ministry press release, the decision was taken in the wake of security developments at EU level in areas of strategic interest for Romania. The agenda of the session includes, among others, measures to step up the operational capability of our country’s integrated response system in emergency situations with a view to preventing and combating terrorism and large-scale crime.

PENTAGON — The Pentagon on Thursday announced it would terminate operations at an airbase in Great Britain, also closing down another 14 locations in Europe, which will be taken over by those countries’ authorities, as part of a strategy aimed at saving some 500 million dollars per year, Reuters reports. US military bases in Germany, Italy, Portugal, Belgium and the Netherlands will also be affected by a similar decision. The US has over 64,000 military deployed in Europe, mostly in Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. The decision to re-structure US bases in Europe comes as the Pentagon needs to cut down on spending by nearly 1,000 billion dollars over the next 10 years.

BUDGET — The Constitutional Court of Romania on Monday will discuss the notification regarding the 2015 budget, submitted by the centre-right opposition. Liberal MPs believe the draft budget is unconstitutional, as it wasn’t adopted within the deadline under the law and does not include a fiscal and budgetary policy. Prime Minister Victor Ponta says that any delay in the adoption of the budget law will delay the increase of pensions, the disbursement of subsidies or the reduction of VAT for the travel sector. The draft budget is grounded on a 1.8% deficit, a 2.2% inflation rate and an economic growth of 2.5%.

FERRY — Some 400 people on Sunday were still stranded onboard a ferry on Otranto bay, between Greece and Italy. No victim has been yet reported, according to France Presse. Rescue operations, involving helicopters and ships, are carried out with great difficulty, due to unfavourable weather conditions.

ELECTION — The presidential administration is looking into the organization of the presidential election of November abroad. President Klaus Iohannis told an online television station that the organization of the presidential ballot abroad was partially adequate, although some ambassadors have warned that several polling stations were needed. After two ballots, on November 2 and 16, when thousands of Romanian could not cast their votes, the General Prosecutor’s Office has started a criminal investigation, taken over by the National Anti-Corruption Directorate. We recall that the vote in the Diaspora resulted in the resignation of Foreign Ministers Titus Corlatean and Teodor Melescanu within less than two weeks.

FOOTBALL — Romanian coach Cosmin Olaroiu will sit on the bench of Saudi Arabia as his first official match on December 30, in a friendly match against Bahrain, played in Melbourne, Australia. Saudi Arabia will play another friendly match against South Korea on January 4, 2015 in Sydney, the last before the Asian Nations Cup. Saudi Arabia has been drawn in Group B, alongside China, Uzbekistan and North Korea. Saudi Arabia has won the trophy 3 times, the last time in 1996.

ALERT — Meteorologists on Sunday issued a code orange alert against snowfalls, cold snap and sleet for ten counties in the south and southeast, valid from Sunday evening to Monday evening. Authorities have warned the alert might be upgraded to a code red during the interval in four counties in the south. Strong wind will be reported in this period, with a high likelihood to generate snowdrifts combined with fresh snow. Additionally, a code yellow alert will become valid on Sunday evening for the capital city Bucharest and 25 counties nationwide.

MOLDOVA — The Parliament of Moldova will convene on December 29, one day before the deadline for the first plenary session of the new Parliament. The three pro-European parties, the Liberal-Democratic Party, the Democratic Party and the Liberal Party have for the last three weeks holding talks with a view to setting up a new ruling coalition. Together, the three parties have grabbed 55 of the 101 seats in Parliament, which is enough to enable them to hold a majority, but not enough to allow them to vote for a new president or change the Constitution. Parliamentary elections were held in Moldova on November 30.

ISAF — The International Security and Assistance Force (ISAF) on Sunday completed its official mission to Afghanistan by means of a ceremony marking the end of 13 years of fighting in a country still facing terrorist rebels. Since 2001 some 3,500 military have been killed in this country. NATO has not made public any data regarding the ceremony due to Taliban threats and attacks, targeting the Afghan capital. On January 1, the Resolute Support mission will start in Afghanistan, aimed at helping and training Afghan security forces. Some 12,500 military will stay behind to help ensure the security of Afghanistan against the Taliban threat. Romania will contribute 450 military to NATO operations in Afghanistan in 2015.

ALERT — Meteorologists on Sunday issued a code orange alert against snowfalls, cold snap and sleet for ten counties in the south and southeast, valid from Sunday evening to Monday evening. Authorities have warned the alert might be upgraded to a code red during the interval in four counties in the south. Strong wind will be reported in this period, with a high likelihood to generate snowdrifts combined with fresh snow. Additionally, a code yellow alert will become valid on Sunday evening for the capital city Bucharest and 25 counties nationwide.

SNOWFALLS — Winter has set in across Europe as well. Meteorologists have issued alerts against cold weather in several countries. In France, 19 departments in the north and the east are under a code orange alert against snowfalls. Several thousands of cars remained stranded overnight in the Alps due to heavy snowfalls. In Belgium the authorities have issued a code orange alert against snow and sleet, while rail traffic has been severely disrupted. 12 provinces in Spain are under a code orange alert against snowfall and cold weather. In Germany, the snow layer measures 40 cm in certain areas. The cold snap has caused traffic jams in other regions. Strong wind is reported in Slovenia, while Croatia is under a code orange alert against heavy snowfalls and strong wind until Wednesday. The Dalmatian Coast is also under a code red alert.

ISAF — The International Security and Assistance Force (ISAF) on Sunday completed its official mission to Afghanistan by means of a ceremony marking the end of 13 years of fighting in a country still facing terrorist rebels. Since 2001 some 3,500 military have been killed in this country. NATO has not made public any data regarding the ceremony due to Taliban threats and attacks, targeting the Afghan capital. On January 1, the Resolute Support mission will start in Afghanistan, aimed at helping and training Afghan security forces. Some 12,500 military will stay behind to help ensure the security of Afghanistan against the Taliban threat. Romania will contribute 450 military to NATO operations in Afghanistan in 2015.

PLANE MISSING — An AirAsia airliner carrying 162 people onboard went missing on Sunday. The plane was travelling from Indonesia to Singapore, and the pilot had asked permission to “deviate” from the original flight plan due to unfavourable weather conditions. The Indonesia authorities have kicked off search and rescue operations, with the plane likely to crash off the Belitung Island. This is the third air crash in 2014 involving an airline operator from Malaysia.

MOLDOVA — The Parliament of Moldova will convene on December 29, one day before the deadline for the first plenary session of the new Parliament. The three pro-European parties, the Liberal-Democratic Party, the Democratic Party and the Liberal Party have for the last three weeks holding talks with a view to setting up a new ruling coalition. Together, the three parties have grabbed 55 of the 101 seats in Parliament, which is enough to enable them to hold a majority, but not enough to allow them to vote for a new president or change the Constitution. Parliamentary elections were held in Moldova on November 30.

FIRE — A fire broke out on Sunday onboard an Italian ferry off the Corfu Island. The Greek Coast Guard has kicked off an operation to rescue the 466 passengers onboard. So far 55 people have been transferred to another ship. Rescue operations are however hindered by harsh weather conditions.

ELECTION — Presidential elections are today taking place in Croatia. The current president, Ivo Josipovic, supported by the Social-Democratic party in power, is seen as favourite to win in oppinion polls. His main opponent in the presidential race is former Foreign Minister Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, representing the Democratic Croatian Union. Under the Constitution, the president enjoys limited powers. He is the supreme military commander and regulates foreign policy jointly with the Government. If none of the candidates obtains 50% plus 1 of the total number of votes, a second ballot will be held on January 11, 2015. The latest comer to the family of EU Member States, Croatia is currently facing a severe economic crisis.

FOOTBALL — Romanian coach Cosmin Olaroiu will sit on the bench of Saudi Arabia as his first official match on December 30, in a friendly match against Bahrain, played in Melbourne, Australia. Saudi Arabia will play another friendly match against South Korea on January 4, 2015 in Sydney, the last before the Asian Nations Cup. Saudi Arabia has been drawn in Group B, alongside China, Uzbekistan and North Korea. Saudi Arabia has won the trophy 3 times, the last time in 1996.

IOHANNIS – Europe would progress better if member state remained faithful to fundamental EU values, such as equality among partners, Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis told the French weekly L’Express. At the same time the president voiced disapproval of the two-gear Europe, claiming that each member state has the same rights and obligations. Iohannis believes differences between EU Member States are rather economic than conceptual. The Romanian official also said that European states are democracies, some faring better than other, newer ones, such as Romania.

DECISION — The Ukrainian Parliament has voted in favour in renouncing the country’s non-aligned status with a view to eventually joining NATO. The decision follows after Russia’s annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and the escalating of the conflict in Eastern Ukraine. The law is to be promulgated by president Petro Poroshenko. The president has put Ukraine’s NATO accession at the top of his foreign policy agenda. Russian Foreign Minister Serghei Lavrov has warned that Ukraine’s decision is counter-productive and does little to ease tensions between the two countries.

BUDGET – Romania’s Constitutional Court on December 29 will be looking into the challenge submitted by the parliamentary groups in opposition, made up of the National Liberal Party and the Liberal Democratic Party against the draft budget for 2015. MPs explained the decision to contest the document has been taken since the parties involved failed to meet the November 15 deadline when the draft budget bill was to be submitted, but also because the current Government failed to come up with an appropriate budget and fiscal strategy. Prime Minister Victor Ponta called for responsibility, underscoring the delay will take its toll on ordinary citizens themselves, all the more so since the challenge will stall the increase of pensions, the granting of subsidies or the VAT deduction in the tourism sector. This past Sunday Parliament passed the budget bill, which includes regulatory measures targeting economic growth, the creation of jobs, the increase of pensions and of the child rearing benefits, as well as the increase of allowances for people with disabilities. The draft budget structure is grounded on a deficit of 1.8% of the GDP, an inflation rate of 2.2% and an economic growth of 2.5%.

COMMEMORATION – Commemorating events dedicated to the December 1989 anti-communist revolution’s 25th anniversary continued in Bucharest on Tuesday. A military ceremony, a religious service and a wreath-laying ceremony were held at the Heroes Monument at the Henri Coanda International Airport. The event was organized by the Gendarmerie, to pay tribute to the 40 young military who lost their lives on the premises 25 years ago. On Monday, bells tolled in churches all across Romania and services were held in the memory of those who were killed in action. The anti-communist revolt broke out in Timisoara on December 16, 1989, and rapidly spread across Romania, to the capital and the country’s major cities. More than 1,000 people lost their lives and Romania is the former Eastern Bloc’s only country where the change of regime occurred violently, with the communist leaders being executed.

INFRASTRUCTURE – The Government in Bucharest on Tuesday examined the situation of Romania’s highway infrastructure. A Government spokesperson said the Ministry of Transportation will make public an information review on the General Transport Plan on its website, adding that a more detailed analysis will be made available in January. According to the Transport Ministry, at the end of 2014 the European Funds absorption rate stood at 59%, as part of the Operational Transport program. At present, Romania has 646 kilometres of highway, yet the government’s set target is to double the length of the highway infrastructure by 2018 and to subsequently expand the highway infrastructure. Romania is among Europe’s bottom-of-the-table countries in terms of number of highway kilometres. Spain and Germany are on top position with 16,000 and 12,000 kilometres of highways, respectively.

REPATRIATION – The ceremony marking the repatriation of the military from the “Carpathians Falcons “ infantry battalion, who have recently returned home, after a six-month mission they took in Afghanistan was held on Tuesday. The 124 military, jointly with the international coalition and the Afghan security forces provided ground defence for the Kandahar airport. For “exceptionally well executed service”, all Romanian military were awarded appreciation certificates by their American counterparts.

SUMMIT – The Eurasian Economic Union’s launching Summit kicked off in Moscow on Tuesday. The union is made up of Russia, Belarus, Armenia and Kazakhstan. Armenia will become a full member on January 2, while Kyrgyzstan signed the accession Treaty and hopes to become a full member in 2015. The Treaty provides for the free circulation of products, capital and workforce and for coordinating policies in the fields of industry, agriculture, energy and other sectors. Russian president Vladimir Putin said a single market would become available, comprising 170 million consumers, with a GDP of 4.5 trillion dollars. The Summit is held against the backdrop of a comeback of the Russian currency, in the wake of the sharp drop the Rouble saw last week and tensions between founding states.

WAR ON TERROR — The assassination of foreign journalists by members of the Islamic State group turned 2014 into one of the bloodiest years for that professional category at global level, according to the annual survey compiled by the Committee to Protect Journalists, France Presse reports. The Committee also revealed that in 2014 at least 60 journalists were killed, most of them coming from the West. Around a quarter of the journalists killed in 2014 were war correspondents, the aforementioned Committee also revealed. For the first time since 2001, Committee to Protect Journalists has found out that in Ukraine journalists were killed while on the job. The bloodiest death toll for journalists has revealed that for the third year in a row, Syria comes on top position, with 17 journalists killed. Nearly half of the journalist who lost their lives in 2014 were killed in the Middle East.

IMF — Romanian authorities on Saturday continued negotiations with representatives of the IMF and the European Commission regarding the draft budget for 2015. Negotiations are hampered by diverging visions over the budget deficit. IMF officials expect a 0.9% deficit, while the Government insists the deficit should stand at 1.4%. Prime Minister Victor Ponta claims the demand is unacceptable, and that it would force the Government to slash money for investment, healthcare or the co-financing of European projects. On Friday, Minister Delegate for Budget Darius Valcov said that Romania could not afford a budget deficit below 1.4% of the GDP, and that the economy would face a severe slump with a 0.9% deficit.

MOLDOVA — The Constitutional Court of Moldova on Saturday looked at a notification regarding the neutrality of this country filed by Liberal MPs who plead for NATO accession. Under the Constitution, the Republic of Moldova is neutral and cannot host foreign troops on its territory. Liberal leader Mihai Ghimpu however believes these provisions to be unfair, given the presence of Russian military in the pro-Russian breakaway region of Transdniestr. In another development, the Moldovan Liberal Democratic and Liberal-Democratic parties continue negotiations regarding the future governing program. The three parties won the elections of November 30, grabbing 55 of the 101 seats in Parliament. The Government hopes to obtain EU candidate status by 2017 and to join the EU in 2020.

HANDBALL — The Romanian women’s handball team on Sunday will play Norway in Debrecen, Hungary, as part of the first match at the European Championships. Denmark and Ukraine will face each other in the other group fixture. Coach Gheorghe Tadici sees Romania ranking among the first eight teams this year, after it ranked 10th at the European Championships of 2012 and in 2013 at the World Championships. In the last two friendly matches ahead of the Championships Romania grabbed a two-leg win against Germany.

RULING — The Bucharest Court of Law is ruling in the case of the pre-emptive arrest of 11 people in the Media PRO court case. Prosecutors accuse these people of money laundering and tax evasion, causing a damage worth 1 million euros to the state budget. Media PRO is one of the most influential private media trusts in Romania, owning a network of television stations, magazines, newspapers and cinema halls.

MEETING — The Western powers and Russia should avoid being separated by new walls, 25 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the symbol of a divided Europe, French president Francois Hollande told his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Saturday in Moscow. Putin hailed what he has termed “a genuine working visit”. Hollande is the first European leader to pay an official visit to Moscow since the outbreak of the crisis in Ukraine. The two leaders also called for an immediate stop to the bloodshed in Eastern Ukraine. According to France Presse, the meeting was not duly prepared, with Hollande scheduled to arrive in Moscow after an official visit to Kazakhstan. In Astana, Hollande had said that Moscow and Kiev should kick off a peace-making process supervised by the French and the Germans to reduce tensions sparked by the annexation of Crimea and the Russian support for breakaway regions in Eastern Ukraine.

WITHDRAWAL –The United States will delay the withdrawal of some 1,000 military from Afghanistan by several months, the outgoing Secretary of Defence Chuck Hagel said on Saturday. Upon his last official visit to Kabul, Chuck Hagel said that in early 2015 Afghanistan should still host some 10,800 military, as compared to 9,800 originally estimated in the withdrawal calendar. The United States plan to reduce its military presence in Afghanistan in 2016 below 5,500 military, while in 2017 the only forces present will be those ensuring the security of the US embassy in Kabul. Romania too kicked off the withdrawal process this year, which since 2002 have joined the international coalition to combat terrorism. Romania contributed some 25,000 military to operations in Afghanistan, having successfully carried out some 1,900 military and humanitarian missions. The number of Romanian military who will stay behind at the end of 2014 stands at 200. The Romanian troops will take charge of training of Afghan security forces.

IMF — Romanian authorities on Saturday continued negotiations with representatives of the IMF and the European Commission regarding the draft budget for 2015. Negotiations are hampered by diverging visions over the budget deficit. IMF officials expect a 0.9% deficit, while the Government insists the deficit should stand at 1.4%. Prime Minister Victor Ponta claims the demand is unacceptable, and that it would force the Government to slash money for investment, healthcare or the co-financing of European projects. On Friday, Minister Delegate for Budget Darius Valcov said that Romania could not afford a budget deficit below 1.4% of the GDP, and that the economy would face a severe slump with a 0.9% deficit.

MOLDOVA — The Constitutional Court of Moldova on Saturday looked at a notification regarding the neutrality of this country filed by Liberal MPs who plead for NATO accession. Under the Constitution, the Republic of Moldova is neutral and cannot host foreign troops on its territory. Liberal leader Mihai Ghimpu however believes these provisions to be unfair, given the presence of Russian military in the pro-Russian breakaway region of Transdniestr. In another development, the Moldovan Liberal Democratic and Liberal-Democratic parties continue negotiations regarding the future governing program. The three parties won the elections of November 30, grabbing 55 of the 101 seats in Parliament. The Government hopes to obtain EU candidate status by 2017 and to join the EU in 2020.

SAINT NICHOLAS –Orthodox, Greek-Catholic and Roman-Catholic people in Romania celebrated Saint Nicholas on Saturday, also known as the Miracle Worker. Born in the third century AD in the Middle East, Saint Nicholas went down in history for his generosity and philanthropy. A great number of miracles are attributed to him, both during his lifetime and after his death. Some 800 thousand Romanians named Nicolae, Nicoleta or other derivatives celebrated their name day on Saturday. According to the traditional calendar, on the Eve of St. Nicholas, children polish their boots and lay them by the door for Father Nicholas to fill them with sweets and other gifts overnight.

HANDBALL — The Romanian women’s handball team on Sunday will play Norway in Debrecen, Hungary, as part of the first match at the European Championships. Denmark and Ukraine will face each other in the other group fixture. Coach Gheorghe Tadici sees Romania ranking among the first eight teams this year, after it ranked 10th at the European Championships of 2012 and in 2013 at the World Championships. In the last two friendly matches ahead of the Championships Romania grabbed a two-leg win against Germany.

RULING — The Bucharest Court of Law is ruling in the case of the pre-emptive arrest of 11 people in the Media PRO court case. Prosecutors accuse these people of money laundering and tax evasion, causing a damage worth 1 million euros to the state budget. Media PRO is one of the most influential private media trusts in Romania, owning a network of television stations, magazines, newspapers and cinema halls.

MEETING — Russian president Vladimir Putin on Saturday met with his French counterpart Francois Hollande in Moscow to examine the developments in Ukraine. According to France Presse, the meeting was not duly prepared, with Hollande scheduled to arrive in Moscow after an official visit to Kazakhstan. In Astana, Hollande had said that Moscow and Kiev should kick off a peace-making process supervised by the French and the Germans to reduce tensions sparked by the annexation of Crimea and the Russian support for breakaway regions in Eastern Ukraine.

IMF — The IMF and the European Commission support the budget rectification approved Wednesday by the Romanian Government, the minister delegate for budget, Darius Valcov said Thursday. The rectification brings more money to the healthcare and defense ministries, among others. This positive rectification was due to a higher absorption of European funds and increased budget returns, the government official says. A joint mission of the IMF and the European Commission is in Bucharest for talks with the Romanian authorities on the draft budget law for 2015.

GREY ECONOMY — Romania’s grey economy is estimated at almost 29% of the GDP, more over the European average, which stands at 19%, shows a study made by the consultancy company PricewaterhouseCoopers and by Mastercard. The study also includes a set of measures for the reduction of tax evasion, measures that have already been adopted by other countries. The measures include the limitation of daily cash receipts the organization of fiscal lotteries and the compulsory use by all trade companies of cash registers connected online to the systems of the fiscal authorities. In Romania the money supply in circulation, which fuels the development of the grey economy, amounts to almost 60% of the GDP, that is 6 times more than the average amount reported in the EU.

SUPPORT — Romania continues to support Georgia in its efforts to join the European Union and NATO, Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu said on Thursday upon meeting with his Georgian counterpart Tamar Beruchashvili on the sideline of the OSCE Foreign Ministers meeting in Basel, Switzerland. Aurescu reiterated Romania’s support for the process of implementing the Association Agreement Georgia has signed with the European Union this summer, recalling that Romania was the first EU Member State to ratify the document, as it did with the agreements signed by Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova. In addition, Aurescu gave assurances that Bucharest supports the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia, to which Romania contributes a large group of officials. Also on Thursday, the Romanian Foreign Minister met with his Hungarian counterpart Peter Szijarto.

PARTNERSHIP — Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu on Thursday met with US Secretary of State John Kerry on the sideline of the OSCE Foreign Ministers meeting in Basel, Switzerland. On this occasion, Aurescu reiterated our country’s support for developing the Strategic Partnership with the United States, a central pillar of Romania’s foreign policy. Aurescu extended an invitation to the US official to visit Romania next year to mark 135 years of bilateral diplomatic relations between Romania and the United States. In addition, the two officials discussed preparations to set up the military base in Deveselu, southern Romania, which is to host elements of the US anti-ballistic shield in Europe, as well as the political situation in the Republic of Moldova following last Sunday’s parliamentary elections. Moreover, in his speech, Aurescu referred to European security against the backdrop of the developments in Ukraine and the frozen conflicts in the Black Sea area.

GOVERNMENT — The three pro-Western parties in the Moldovan ruling coalition on Thursday agreed to continue in the current format following last Sunday’s parliamentary elections. The Liberal-Democratic Party, the Democratic Party and the Liberal Party together have won 55 of the 101 seats in Parliament. The Socialist and Communist Parties have also entered Parliament. The two parties call for closer relations with Russia. Voter turnout stood at 56%. No notable incidents were reported, according to international observers. The new Parliament is due to elect the forthcoming president.

VISIT — Romania’s president elect, Klaus Iohannis, will pay a private visit to the US from December 4th to 10th. After the November elections, Washington congratulated him for his victory and expressed the American authorities’ wish that the relations between the two countries should remain “strong”, Bucharest being considered “an important strategic partner”. The American vice-president Joe Biden also congratulated Klaus Iohannis for his victory on the phone, pointing out that the massive vote turnout was a sign of a strong and healthy democracy. Last week Klaus Iohannis paid a visit to the ex-Soviet Republic of Moldova where he met with President Nicolae Timofti.

VISA WAIVER — The Romanian Foreign Ministry has hailed the announcement of the American authorities regarding a drop in the refusal rate of visa applications filed by the Romanian citizens for the first time under the 10% threshold in the 2013- 2014 fiscal year. According to a Romanian Foreign Ministry communiqué these developments consolidate the ascending trend reported in the 2010- 2014 period. Also the Romanian Foreign Ministry officials expressed hope that this trend would be maintained next year as well, as it is relevant for the continuous progress registered by Romania in terms of compliance with the criteria required for inclusion in the Visa Waiver program, which eliminates visas for the citizens who want to travel to the US.