Radio România Internațional

Tag: PM Sorin Grindeanu

June 19, 2017 UPDATE

BUCHAREST – In Bucharest, less than 6 months after
taking office, the cabinet led by PM Sorin Grindeanu is faced with its first
motion of no-confidence, initiated by the parties that formed the government in
the first place, the Social Democrats and ruling coalition partners ALDE. The
text of the motion was read in full Parliament session on Sunday, and will be
debated and submitted to a vote on Wednesday. The initiators of the motion
claim that withdrawing their political support means the end of the government’s
mandate, and that PM Grindeanu should have resigned when the government
coalition made the decision, after an evaluation of the executive’s activity.

BERLIN – To Romania, the relationship with Germany is not
just strategically important, but also a privilege, said in Berlin Romania’s
President Klaus Iohannis during a press conference he held alongside Chancellor
Angela Merkel on Monday. Germany, the Romanian head of state also pointed out,
has remained Romania’s most important trading partner. As regards the
trans-Atlantic relation, Romania and Germany agree that there should be no
choosing between the EU and NATO, and that the Union is important to the US,
just like the US is important to the EU. In turn, the German chancellor sated
that Bucharest and Berlin share the same view on Brexit, border security,
terrorism and migration. According to the German Chancellor, Romania has made
significant progress in defending the rule of law and in the fight against
corruption, also stressing that slowing the pace would not be a good thing. On
Monday, the Romanian president also held talks with his German counterpart
Frank Walter Steimeier. The Romanian president’s three-day visit to Germany
bears particular significance, as 2017 is the
year when Romania celebrates 50 years of diplomatic ties with Germany on
embassy level, 25 years since the signing of the partnership and cooperation treaty
with Germany and also 10 years since Romania joined the EU.

BRUSSELS – Negotiations have begun in Brussels for
Britain’s exit from the European Union. British voters stood in favour of the
so called Brexit in a referendum held in June last year. Almost three months
ago, PM Theresa May activated Article 50 of the Lisbon treaty, which regulates
a member state’s exit from the community.
The negotiation process, which is supposed to end before 30 March 2019, is
expected to be convoluted, considering the different perspectives of the
parties on essential issues, such as Europeans living in Britain, and Brits
living in the EU. Other points of contention are the Irish frontier, and the
debts that the UK may have to pay on account of its EU commitments.

PARIS- French PM Emmanuel Macron’s centrist party En
marche and its ally, MoDem, have emerged victorious in the second round of
Parliament elections on Sunday. They now hold the majority in the National
Assembly, which would allow the implementation of the social liberal platform
of the newly elected head of state. The two parties won 350 seats of the total
of 577. However, the elections were marred by absenteeism, with only 43% of
voters showing up to the polls. The first law to be voted in the Paris
legislative assembly will be on reducing privileges for dignitaries. Changes
are also expected to be proposed in terms of labor regulations and taxation. At
the same time, President Macron wants to bolster security contingents, in order
to support the fight against terrorism.

LONDON – British PM Theresa May has stated that the
police are treating the latest attack in London as a potential terror attack,
and has called an emergency cabinet meeting. One man was killed and ten people
were injured after a van plowed into a group of people in the north-east of
London exiting a mosque after a religious service for Ramadan. The victims are
all Muslim. The driver, 48 years old, was immobilized by by-standers and then
arrested. The mosque was known since the early 2000s as a place favored by
Islamists in London, who came there to attend sermons by Egyptian cleric Abu
Hamza, who was in the meantime given a life sentence by the United States for
terror related activities. The fresh attack came against high tensions, as the
UK is in the aftermath of three terror attacks in three months, two of which
have involved vehicles driven into crowds of pedestrians.

19 June 2017
June 19, 2017 UPDATE

BUCHAREST – In Bucharest, less than 6 months after
taking office, the cabinet led by PM Sorin Grindeanu is faced with its first
motion of no-confidence, initiated by the parties that formed the government in
the first place, the Social Democrats and ruling coalition partners ALDE. The
text of the motion was read in full Parliament session on Sunday, and will be
debated and submitted to a vote on Wednesday. The initiators of the motion
claim that withdrawing their political support means the end of the government’s
mandate, and that PM Grindeanu should have resigned when the government
coalition made the decision, after an evaluation of the executive’s activity.

BERLIN – To Romania, the relationship with Germany is not
just strategically important, but also a privilege, said in Berlin Romania’s
President Klaus Iohannis during a press conference he held alongside Chancellor
Angela Merkel on Monday. Germany, the Romanian head of state also pointed out,
has remained Romania’s most important trading partner. As regards the
trans-Atlantic relation, Romania and Germany agree that there should be no
choosing between the EU and NATO, and that the Union is important to the US,
just like the US is important to the EU. In turn, the German chancellor sated
that Bucharest and Berlin share the same view on Brexit, border security,
terrorism and migration. According to the German Chancellor, Romania has made
significant progress in defending the rule of law and in the fight against
corruption, also stressing that slowing the pace would not be a good thing. On
Monday, the Romanian president also held talks with his German counterpart
Frank Walter Steimeier. The Romanian president’s three-day visit to Germany
bears particular significance, as 2017 is the
year when Romania celebrates 50 years of diplomatic ties with Germany on
embassy level, 25 years since the signing of the partnership and cooperation treaty
with Germany and also 10 years since Romania joined the EU.

BRUSSELS – Negotiations have begun in Brussels for
Britain’s exit from the European Union. British voters stood in favour of the
so called Brexit in a referendum held in June last year. Almost three months
ago, PM Theresa May activated Article 50 of the Lisbon treaty, which regulates
a member state’s exit from the community.
The negotiation process, which is supposed to end before 30 March 2019, is
expected to be convoluted, considering the different perspectives of the
parties on essential issues, such as Europeans living in Britain, and Brits
living in the EU. Other points of contention are the Irish frontier, and the
debts that the UK may have to pay on account of its EU commitments.

PARIS- French PM Emmanuel Macron’s centrist party En
marche and its ally, MoDem, have emerged victorious in the second round of
Parliament elections on Sunday. They now hold the majority in the National
Assembly, which would allow the implementation of the social liberal platform
of the newly elected head of state. The two parties won 350 seats of the total
of 577. However, the elections were marred by absenteeism, with only 43% of
voters showing up to the polls. The first law to be voted in the Paris
legislative assembly will be on reducing privileges for dignitaries. Changes
are also expected to be proposed in terms of labor regulations and taxation. At
the same time, President Macron wants to bolster security contingents, in order
to support the fight against terrorism.

LONDON – British PM Theresa May has stated that the
police are treating the latest attack in London as a potential terror attack,
and has called an emergency cabinet meeting. One man was killed and ten people
were injured after a van plowed into a group of people in the north-east of
London exiting a mosque after a religious service for Ramadan. The victims are
all Muslim. The driver, 48 years old, was immobilized by by-standers and then
arrested. The mosque was known since the early 2000s as a place favored by
Islamists in London, who came there to attend sermons by Egyptian cleric Abu
Hamza, who was in the meantime given a life sentence by the United States for
terror related activities. The fresh attack came against high tensions, as the
UK is in the aftermath of three terror attacks in three months, two of which
have involved vehicles driven into crowds of pedestrians.

19 June 2017
June 15, 2017 UPDATE

CRISIS – The National Executive Council of the Social Democratic Party, the main party in the ruling coalition in Romania, decided on Thursday to file a motion of non-confidence against its own Cabinet. Also, the Council decided that Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu, who refused to resign, will be excluded from the party. The Senate Speaker Calin Popescu Tariceanu, the leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania, which is the other member of the ruling coalition, has blamed the Prime Minister for lack of efficiency in implementing the governing programme, an accusation that Grindeanu has rejected. Romanias President Klaus Iohannis has called on the coalition to urgently come to a settlement in the present political crisis in order to avoid destabilizing the country.

COOPERATION – “The UK underscores the firm commitment to Romania in the context of Russias continued aggression”, the British Defense Secretary Michael Fallon said in Bucharest on Thursday at a meeting with his Romanian counterpart Gabriel Les. The British official also stated that London remains involved in the security actions carried out in Europe, even if it decided to leave the Union. In turn, Gabriel Les stated that the Romanian – British strategic partnership has been advancing at an excellent pace, also stressing that the British commitment is a major contribution in the context of NATO insurance measures, as well as a pillar for strengthening NATOs defense and deterrence posture. On Wednesday, the two officials paid a visit to the air base in Mihail Kogalniceanu, in south-eastern Romania, where they met with pilots and technical staff servicing the four Typhoon fighter jets of the British Air Forces, which came to Romania to carry out air policing missions.

VISIT – Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu has met with his German counterpart Sigmar Gabriel in Berlin, where he stated that cooperation with Germany was essential for Romania. Melescanu emphasized the vital role that the German minority has in the architecture of the relationship between the two countries, and the efforts made to help preserve the identity of ethnic Germans in Romania. Talks centered also on the fact that Germany is Romanias most important trade partner, as well as one of its most important investors.

AID – On Thursday, the EU green-lighted a 100 million Euro aid to the Republic of Moldova, the former Soviet country with a predominantly Romanian speaking population. In exchange for this aid, the EU calls for more reforms to be developed and implemented by the Chisinau authorities. The EU wants measures in the financial sector and in the management of public finances, as well as guarantees regarding the observance of the rule of law, human rights, the independence of the judiciary and pluralism. The aid consists of 60 million Euro worth of loans at favourable interest rates and a non-reimbursable aid of 40 million Euros. In early 2015, the EU had suspended its aid to the Republic of Moldova, after discovering huge frauds in the countrys banking system. The prejudice estimated then stood at one billion dollars, the equivalent of 15% of the GDP.

INVESTIGATION – The British Prime Minister Theresa May on Thursday requested a public investigation into the fire that on Tuesday night destroyed a residential high-rise in west London. According to a provisional toll, at least 17 people died in the fire, and dozens were wounded. Some of them are now in a critical condition. Emergency services have stated that it might take weeks for the search operations to be completed.

ROAMING – On June 15th, the EU and the European Economic Area, which includes Norway, Iceland and Lichtenstein, adopted new rules, known as Roam Like at Home, which remove roaming charges for mobile telephony. Subscribers traveling between countries within this area are now charged the same fees as in their country of origin.

BUSINESS – The Start Up Nation program came into effect in Romania on Thursday. Potential beneficiaries can register their business projects on-line for 30 days. It has been allocated about 378 million Euro from domestic and European funds. The maximum amount that can benefit individual applicants is about 45,000 Euro. The main aim of the program is to stimulate the creation of SMEs, improving the efficacy of start-up companies and their access to financing. This year, the Start Up Nation program is estimated to create 10,000 new businesses, which would in turn create at least 10,000 new jobs.

15 June 2017
Political Crisis in Bucharest (update)

The Romanian Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanus refusal to resign, although pressured by his own Social Democratic Party, the main force in the ruling coalition in Romania, has created a bizarre first on the Romanian political scene after the 1989 anti-communist revolution. On Thursday, the National Executive Council of the Social Democratic Party decided to file a motion of no-confidence against its own Cabinet, formed after winning Decembers parliamentary elections with 45% of the votes.

Moreover, and quite predictably, the Executive Council decided to punish him through exclusion, after the coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania (ALDE) had withdrawn its political support for the premier. The leaders of the coalition, the Social Democrat Liviu Dragnea, who is also the Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies and the Liberal – Democrat Senate Speaker Calin Popescu Tariceanu have stated that the decision was necessary, given that the government has not been able to fulfill most of the objectives included in the governing programme.

Prime Minister Grindeanu, however, has rejected the accusation, saying that six months in office are not enough to carry out large-scale reforms. Moreover, Grindeanu, imposed at the helm of the Government by the very head of the Social Democratic Party Liviu Dragnea, has stated that the report that assessed his activity, drawn up by somebody from inside the party, is not an objective one, and he didnt even have access to it.

To analysts, removing Grindeanu is the Social Democrat leader Liviu Dragneas express wish, who is unhappy with the fact that the Prime Minister has turned from a docile lieutenant into an independent character, whose autonomy has become disturbing. On the other hand, the Grindeanu Government has failed to impose pieces of criminal legislation that would make Dragneas life easier, as he was given a suspended sentence of two years in prison in one case, and he is also being prosecuted in another case, in which his situation is rather complicated.

Romanias President Klaus Iohannis has called on the ruling coalition to urgently settle the political crisis in order to avoid destabilizing the country. The presidential administration has stated that the parties in the coalition have the obligation to seek a solution. It remains to be seen how the Social Democratic Party is going to solve the crisis and if the opposition, usually rather absent, will take advantage of a unique situation.

15 June 2017
March 29, 2017

AWARD Romanias President Klaus Iohannis is going to receive today Prince Charles of Great Britain, whom he will award the Star of Romania National Order in Rank of Grand Cross. According to the Presidential Administration, the order is awarded in appreciation of the activity carried out by the Prince in Romania and for promoting Romanias image abroad. The agenda of talks includes the bilateral strategic partnership, the situation of the Romanian community in the UK after Brexit and the charity work conducted by Prince Charles in Romania. Although he has visited Romania many times in the past years, this is only his second formal visit. In 2016, Prince Charles set up his own foundation in Romania, whose goal is to protect the national heritage and support this countrys sustainable development. The Prince is passionate about Saxon medieval architecture in central Romania, fortresses, churches and houses built by the German settlers in Transylvania in the Middle Ages.

INVESTIGATION The Romanian Justice Minister Tudorel Toader is going to announce today the results of the evaluation of the activity carried out by Romanias General Prosecutor Augustin Lazar and of the Chief Prosecutor of the National Anticorruption Directorate Laura Codruta Kovesi. Toader started the evaluation after the Constitutional Court said the Directorate had exceeded its responsibilities with regard to the investigation into the way in which the Government made up of members of the Social Democratic Party and of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats promoted the famous emergency decree that would have partially disincriminate abuse of office. Early this week, Tudorel Toader had a talk with Codruta Kovesi, at the end of which the latter said she had no reason to resign.

BREXIT The official separation of the UK from the European Union starts today, under article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. On Tuesday, Prime Minister Theresa May signed the notification letter that is to be submitted today to the European Council President Donald Tusk. Great Britains invoking article 50 is going to be analyzed today by the European Commission and by representatives of the political groups in the European Parliament. In another move, on Tuesday, the Scottish MPs urged the head of the Edinburgh government Nicola Sturgeon to call on London to organize another referendum on Scotlands independence. France Presse recalls that, three years ago, the Scottish separatists lost the first referendum on independence. More on this after the news.

EPPO Romania is one of the 13 EU member countries, alongside France, Germany, Spain and Belgium, which on Tuesday signed an essential document for the setting up of a European Public Prosecutors Office. The document was signed by the Romanian Justice Minister Tudorel Toader, who attended in Brussels the Justice and Home Affairs Council. The European Public Prosecutors Office will investigate and prosecute EU-fraud and other crimes affecting the Unions financial interests. The Office will be headed by an independent European Public Prosecutor, and its investigations will in principle be carried out by European Delegated Prosecutors located in each Member State.

TRADE The Romanian Trade Minister Alexandru Petrescu has had meetings in Jerusalem with the Israeli Minister of the Economy Eli Cohen and other officials, as part of his formal visit to Israel, aimed at boosting bilateral cooperation. The talks highlighted the Israeli partys interest in developing businesses in various sectors of the Romanian economy, such as railways, logistics, sea transportation and even in the works to expand the Port of Constanta, on the Romanian Black Sea Coast. In an interview to our correspondent, minister Alexandru Petrescu said that commercial diplomacy must be rethought, in order to create a perfect synchronization between Romanias export strategies and the way in which its commercial attaches are posted.

BUSINESS An US business delegation has offered the Romanian Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu a road-map, drawn up by experts in Washington, which includes provisions on the rule of law, transparency and efficiency, which the US business people believe are priorities for the development of business ties between the two countries. On Wednesday, the Prime Minister had a meeting with a delegation headed by Eric Stewart, the president of the American Romanian Business Council, AGERPRESS reports. We have seen progress, and our companies are confident that, when they do business in Romania, everything is going to be fair, legal and transparent, Stewart said. He has also stressed the fact that the road-map was drawn up by experts who are familiar with business and business in Romania in particular.

SENTENCE The Supreme Court in Bucharest today sentenced the former warden of the Periprava labour camp Ion Ficior to 20 years in prison for crimes against humanity. The sentence is final. Ficior was sent to court in August 2014, as in the 1958-1963 period, when he headed the prison-labour colony in Periprava, imposed and coordinated a repressive, abusive, inhumane and discretionary detention system, which resulted in the death of more than 100 detainees. A similar case is that of Alexandru Visinescu, the former warden of the Ramnicu Sarat penitentiary, who got a final 20 year prison sentence. The ruling was a first for the Romanian justice. Visinescu is the first person to be sentenced for acts committed over 50 years ago.

TENNIS The Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, ranking 5th in the WTA classification, is today taking on the British Johanna Konta, WTA no.11, in the quarter finals of the Miami tournament, with 6.9 million dollars in prize money. Halep and Konta have met before, in the round of sixteen of the Wuhan tournament in China, in 2015. Back then, Simona Halep was defeated by the British player.

29 March 2017
Pardon under public debate

The Romanian Government’s plan to pass the draft emergency orders that would grant collective pardon and would revise the Criminal Code has generated public outrage across Romania. The draft ordinances, promoted by the Ministry of Justice, have brought thousands of people to the streets of Bucharest and other cities across the country, who protested at the bills that the Grindeanu Government intended to pass last week.

Protesters believe that famous defendants and convicts, many of them influential politicians and public figures would thus get out of prison or might ask for their cases to be closed. President Klaus Iohannis himself has stood against these modifications and initiated the procedure for a referendum to be held on this issue. Under the Law on transparent decision-making in public administration, on Monday the Ministry of Justice will hold a public debate on these draft emergency orders.

A disinformation campaign has created unnecessary tensions, and these emergency orders would not hamper the fight against corruption, said the Senate Speaker Calin Popescu Tariceanu on the public radio: “No act of corruption would be pardoned. Also, the offences committed by murderers or rapists would not be pardoned either. There is no amnesty provision that would entitle suspicions that these ordinances were drafted to serve certain interests, as it has been implied.”

On the other hand, the main opposition party in Romania, the National Liberal Party, has threatened with a motion of no-confidence if the Government passes the two drafts. Here is the interim president of the party Raluca Turcan: “The Government’s intention to give priority to these emergency orders on pardon and changes to the Criminal Code, instead of focusing on the state budget, proves that it is not interested in the real issues it raised during the election campaign, but only in serving the interest of the people around their group of decision-makers.”

The Higher Council of Magistracy has advised against these draft orders, but it cannot issue any official ruling, as it is only an advisory body in this matter. In turn, Romania’s Chief Prosecutor Augustin Lazar has said that there is no emergency in passing them: “These emergency orders would do nothing but weaken the Romanian state’s institutional capacity to fight against corruption.”

Talks over the draft emergency orders regarding collective pardon and changes to the Criminal Code are being held against the background of Romania being one of the top three countries in terms of number of convictions issued by the European Court of Human Rights. According to the Court President Guido Raimondi, most of these convictions are related to prison conditions.

(Translated by Mihaela Ignatescu)

27 January 2017