Radio România Internațional

Tag: PM

  • The Week in Review (18-24 February)

    The Week in Review (18-24 February)

    Justice Minister formally asks for the dismissal of the anti-corruption directorates chief prosecutor


    The decision of Romanias Justice Minister Tudorel Toader to formally ask for the dismissal of the National Anti-Corruption Directorates chief prosecutor, Laura Codruta Kovesi, has sparked fresh protests throughout the country, with thousands of Romanians taking to the streets shortly after Minister Toaders announcement. In a news conference on Thursday evening, the Justice Minister presented the findings of a report on the activity of the DNAs leadership, in which chief prosecutor Kovesi is being criticised.



    Tudorel Toader accuses Laura Codruta Kovesi of “acts and deeds that are intolerable in a rule of law, such as serious violation of duty, putting pressure on the government and other institutions, postponing sentences in a number of cases, not checking the professional activity and behaviour of certain prosecutors, as well as certain public statements, to name but a few. At the same time, Minister Toader accuses the chief-prosecutor of having breached the constitution and the separation of powers principle.



    Tudorel Toader: “The National Anti-Corruption Directorate does not identify itself with its chief-prosecutor, whose actions in the past year have proven likely to endanger the very institution that she leads, by having an excessively authoritarian and discretionary behaviour, defying Parliaments authority and the Governments role and attributions and contesting the Constitutional Courts decisions and authority.



    Once the procedure is initiated, the chief prosecutors dismissal cannot be done without the head of states approval, after the Superior Council of Magistracy (CSM) gives advice on the request submitted by the Minister of Justice.



    President Klaus Iohannis however, maintains his support for the DNAs activity and its leadership, according to a release by the presidency soon after the proposal for dismissal was made public. President Iohannis believes that the Justice Ministers presentation of the report is lacking in clarity, for which reason the report will be thoroughly analysed by the Presidential Administrations departments. The presidential release also says that the head of state will make use of all his constitutional prerogatives to ensure the functioning of an independent justice system and the consolidation of the rule of law.



    Romanias Prosecutor-General Augustin Lazar has said that there is no legal reason for the dismissal of the DNAs chief prosecutor. On the political stage, the reactions to Minister Toaders announcement were very prompt. The ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD) sees the Justice Ministers request as grounded and well documented. On the other hand, the National Liberal Party, the main opposition party, sees the request as ungrounded, made under the pressure of influential people who have problems with the law.



    The Romanian PM travels to Brussels


    Having paid this week her first official visit to Brussels since being appointed prime minister, the former MEP Viorica Dancila discussed with the European officials about Romanias holding the EU Council presidency in the first half of 2019, financial aspects and the countrys joining the Schengen area. The European Commission President, Jean Claude Junker has said, on this occasion, that there is no reason for Romania not to join the Schengen area. Junker has also voiced hope that the Bucharest Government will make efforts for the countrys judicial system to work. In his opinion, the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism in place for Bulgaria and Romania should be lifted before the mandate of the current Commission ends.



    The Romanian PM also held talks in Brussels with the European Council President Donald Tusk and the head of the European Parliament Antonio Tajani. The latter urged the Romanian Government to continue the battle against corruption and for the consolidation of the rule of law.



    Viorica Dancila: “I believe that good cooperation is beneficial for Europe and for Romania. I will go before the European Parliament to talk about the future of Europe, which Romania must be an active part of, given the countrys taking over the EU Council presidency and the challenges lying ahead.



    The slow absorption of European funds is another topic tackled by PM Dancila at a meeting with the European Commissioner for Regional Policy, Corina Cretu. Commissioner Cretu has again warned the Bucharest authorities over the fact that procedures for using European money must be sped up and simplified.



    The opposition files no-confidence motion against the Labour Minister


    The simple motion filed against the Social Democrat Labour Minister Lia Olguta Vasilescu was rejected on Wednesday in the Chamber of Deputies. Its signatories, 60 Liberal MPs, accuse the ruling coalition of disrupting the fiscal and social systems and creating serious imbalances between the public and private systems, following the transfer of social security contributions from employers to employees starting January 1st, 2018. Following the implementation of this measure, the incomes of around 2 million Romanians have gone down. At the debates in the Chamber of Deputies, Minister Olguta Vasilescu has said that salaries cannot decrease if employers act in good faith.


    (translated by: Elena Enache)

  • December 24, 2017

    December 24, 2017

    TALKS – The Prime Minister of Romania, Mihai Tudose, accepted to meet the representatives of 43 NGOs active in the street protests initiated against the planned changes in the justice laws and the criminal codes. In a Facebook post, Tudose voiced his openness to dialogue and suggested that the meeting took place on December 27. The 43 organisations sent an open letter to the Prime Minister, expressing their willingness to contribute to dialogue, consultation and solutions, in full compliance with the rule of law, fundamental human rights and the democratic principles. New street protests were held on Saturday night in Bucharest and other Romanian cities, against the bills designed to amend the justice laws. On Friday, the Secretary General of the Council of Europe Thorbjorn Jagland sent a letter to the President of Romania Klaus Iohannis, urging him to request an opinion from the Venice Commission on the legislative reform already endorsed by Parliament.




    CHRISTMAS – For Christian believers, today is Christmas Eve, with the last preparations for the Nativity, one of the greatest feasts of the Christian world. A widespread Christmas Eve custom in Romania, a mostly Orthodox country, is carolling, a ritual involving ceremonial texts, dances and gestures. The carollers symbolise the angels and shepherds who were the first heralds of the birth of Jesus. The Christmas Eve dinner differs from one part of the country to another, but in all regions it comprises fasting dishes and must be blessed by a priest first.




    HOLIDAYS – Thousands of Romanians will be spending their holidays in mountain resorts. At the top of the travel destinations these days are the resorts in the Prahova Valley region in the south of Romania, such as Predeal, Sinaia and Buşteni, where occupancy rates are around 80%. In Bâlea Lac, in Făgăraş Mountains, the new Ice Hotel, the only one of its kind in Romania, has opened today. Most of the tourists having booked a room here come from abroad. Music is the chosen theme of this 13th ice hotel built at over 2,000 metres in Făgăraş Mountains. Each of the 15 rooms has been decorated with snow and ice sculptures representing Romanian and international music stars.




    POLICE – In Romania, nearly 23,000 police, gendarmes and fire fighters are working every day throughout the Christmas holiday. Special attention will be paid to preventing public order incidents, fighting anti-social conduct, streamlining road traffic and check point transit, as well as to the management of emergency situations. Police workers and gendarmes will be present especially in crowded places like fairs, train stations, tourist resorts, as well as around over 16,400 churches, where special religious services will be held. Bulgarian-speaking Romanian policemen will also be part of joint patrols with their counterparts from the neighbouring Bulgaria, in the mountain resort of Bansko, until next March, providing support and assistance to the Bulgarian police. This is the 8th winter season when such joint missions are organised in Bulgaria.





    TENNIS – The Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, number 1 in the world, plays today against the Czech Karolina Pliskova, no 4 WTA, in the Intercontinental World Tennis Championship finals in Thailand. On Saturday in the quarter-final, Halep defeated Britains Johanna Konta, 2-0, while Pliskova outplayed Jelena Ostapenko of Latvia, no 7 WTA. Ostapenko and Konta are playing on Sunday for the 3rd place in the competition.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • September 4, 2017 UPDATE

    September 4, 2017 UPDATE

    PM’S HOUR – The head of the left-of-centre government of Romania, Mihai Tudose, held the Prime Ministers Hour in the Chamber of Deputies for the first time since taking office. The 5.6% economic growth rate reported in Romania is the best indicator for the state of the economy, Tudose said on this occasion. He also announced that the 2018 state budget bill would be sent to Parliament in November. The National Liberal Party, which had requested the PM to answer questions in Parliament, argues, among other things, that Romania has the deepest budget deficit in recent years, that revenues to the state budget are some 1.1 billion euro below forecasts and that the trade deficit widened by 30%.



    PARTNERSHIP – The Senate Speaker Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu announced on Monday that at his initiative the upper chamber of the Romanian Parliament would adopt a political declaration on September 12, to mark 20 years since Romania and the USA signed their bilateral strategic partnership. He added that the draft had been sent to the floor groups. Just days ago, the Ambassador of Romania to the USA, George Maior, said relations between Washington and Bucharest are at the highest level of implementation of the bilateral strategic partnership, in all its aspects, from defence and security to economy and culture. Nonetheless, Ambassador Maior said Romania seeks strengthened cooperation with Washington in the field of defence, and mentioned in this context that the Romanian Defence Minister, Adrian Ţuţuianu, would have a meeting with his American counterpart James Mattis on September 19.



    ENESCU FESTIVAL – The George Enescu International Festival, one of the most prestigious music events in Europe, continues in Bucharest. For 3 weeks, 80 concerts and other events will bring more than 3,000 of the best international artists to Bucharest and 7 other major Romanian cities. Radio Romania is the only media institution in the country to broadcast the concerts live, on its channels Radio Romania Music and Radio Romania Culture. First organised in 1958, 3 years after the famed Romanian composer had died, the George Enescu Festival was discontinued in 1971 by the communist regime, and was resumed in 1989. It has been held every 2 years ever since.




    EXERCISE – Between September 4 and 22, more than 100 Romanian troops are taking part in the 4th edition of Vigorous Warrior, a NATO medical exercise held this year in Lehnin, Germany, the Romanian Defence Ministry announced. Taking part in this exercise organised by the NATO Excellence Centre for Military Medicine are around 900 military from 27 NATO member and partner states.



    TURKEY – The actions of the Turkish authorities make it impossible for that country to join the European Union, the European Commission said on Monday, after the German Chancellor Angela Merkel called for the halt of accession talks. Also on Monday, Turkeys Minister for European Affairs, Omer Celik, said that any talk of breaking off negotiations would be an attack on the founding principles of the European Union. Turkeys accession negotiations started in 2005, but are currently stalled because of the political developments in this country and of the authoritarian conduct that president Recep Tayyip Erdogan is accused of, Reuters comments.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • The Week in Review, June 12-18

    The Week in Review, June 12-18

    Political crisis in Romania


    The Romanian political scene is facing these days a crisis of unprecedented magnitude in nearly three decades of post-communist democracy. Here is how the recent events have unfolded: both members of the ruling coalition, the Social Democratic Party (PSD) and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania (ALDE), decided on Wednesday to withdraw their political support for Prime Minister Sorin Grindeau, a decision followed by the resignation of all Cabinet members. The Social Democrat leader Liviu Dragnea voiced dissatisfaction with the performance of some of the Cabinet members, saying that 60% of the objectives included in the governing programme had not been fulfilled.


    Liviu Dragnea: “The Social Democratic Party, together with our colleagues in ALDE, is prepared to form a new Cabinet, which will have a much better structured roadmap, including measures to make up for the delays so far. If we carry on like this, with or without Sorin Grindeanu as a Prime Minister, in 3 months time we risk seeing the governing programme a document almost impossible to implement.


    The Prime Ministers reaction, however, came as a surprise:


    Sorin Grindeanu: “I will not resign! And I can tell you exactly why! I have a responsibility towards Romania and the party I am a member of. I believe we should all feel responsible for this, and I most certainly do!


    Sorin Grindeanu has also stated that he will resign only if Liviu Dragnea resigns too, blaming the latter for the current political crisis, and only after the president of the country, Klaus Iohannis, appoints a new Social Democrat Prime Minister. Therefore, the Social Democratic Party has announced that Sorin Grindeanu will be excluded from the party and that, together with ALDE, will introduce a motion of non-confidence in its own Cabinet, the only way to force the Prime Minister to leave, given the latters refusal to resign.


    In the meantime, Romanias President Klaus Iohannis has called on the two coalition parties to find a solution to the internal crisis that led to withdrawing support for the Grindeanu Government. Here is the presidency spokesperson Madalina Dobrovolschi:


    Madalina Dobrovolschi: “The president calls for an urgent settling of the crisis that occurred inside the ruling coalition, in order to avoid political instability. Resolving this internal crisis is strictly the responsibility of the parties that make up the coalition.


    In response to the current situation, the Liberals, in opposition, have stated that they will decide what stand to take after a constitutional solution is found to the crisis. The Save Romania Union has called for early elections, and the Peoples Movement Party has stated that the Social Democrats should take responsibility for the failure of their governing agenda.



    Miners raids of June 1990


    Partly shadowed by the current political crisis in Romania, the case of the so called “miners raids of June 1990 came back to public attention exactly on June 13th, when Romania commemorated 27 years since the stifling of a large-scale rally against the left-wing power installed after the fall of the communist regime in December 1989. On Tuesday, 14 people, including Romanias first post-communist president Ion Iliescu and prime minister Petre Roman and the former head of the Romanian Intelligence Service Virgil Magureanu were charged with crimes against humanity. On June 13-15, 1990, against the background of some extremely violent clashes in Bucharest, which the army had already managed to stifle, president Ion Iliescu blamed the right-wing of attempting a coup and called on civilians to defend the democratic institutions of the state. In response to the call, miners from Jiu Valley came to Bucharest and stormed the University building and the headquarters of the opposition parties and of independent newspapers. The toll of the violent clashes of June 13-15 was four officially recorded deaths, hundreds of wounded and more than one thousand people arrested abusively. Romanias image abroad was severely damaged, too. The military prosecutors indictment reads that illegally involved in this attack were forces of the Interior Ministry and the Defense Ministry, Intelligence Service units as well as over 10,000 miners and other workers. Among other things, Ion Iliescu is accused of having ordered the army to use war armament and ammunition against civilians.



    New salary raises


    Now that the new salary law for public sector employees is about to be promulgated, several categories of public personnel that have not benefited from pay rises for a long time, will get more money too. On Tuesday, the Romanian Chamber of Deputies endorsed a bill under which the employees of public libraries, of the Agriculture and Culture Ministries, part of the public healthcare personnel, active military and civilian personnel with the Defence Ministry will benefit from increased salaries. Statistics show that Romanian employees salaries have increased by 13.4% on average in the past year, reaching the equivalent of some 520 Euro in April.



    The International Theatre Festival in Sibiu


    Sunday is the last day of the International Theatre Festival hosted by the city of Sibiu, in central Romania. For ten days, thousands of spectators have had the opportunity to watch some 500 performances and cultural events included in the festivals agenda. The entire city, but also other places across the county of Sibiu were turned into theatre venues, hosting some 3,000 artists. One of the special guests to this years edition was the famous Russian-born ballet dancer Mikhail Baryshnikov, who said he was very much impressed with the festival.


    (translated by: Mihaela Ignatescu)

  • The Sebastian Ghita case

    The Sebastian Ghita case

    Romanian businessman Sebastian Ghita, named on Europe’s most wanted fugitives list was arrested on Thursday night in Belgrade, almost four months after he was reported missing on December 21st. On January 10th, Romania’s Supreme Court issued a European arrest warrant on Ghita’s name who was also wanted by Interpol.



    According to the Romanian Police, when he was caught Sebastian Ghita presented a fake Slovenian ID. He was arrested following an extensive international operation. The Romanian Police thanked law enforcement institutions in Serbia, Hungary, Bulgaria, Greece, Turkey, Montenegro, Croatia, Austria, Italy and France as well as to its Romanian partners for their contribution to arresting the fugitive.



    The controversial businessman and former Parliament member disappeared on December 20th, 2016 after breaking the terms of the judicial control. The police agents that were monitoring Ghita lost sight of him when he was heading home during the night, driving his car on a national road by over 200 km/hour.



    The police agents said another car blocked their vehicle thus helping Ghita escape. The car that Gita was driving was later spotted in front of his house, so the police believed he was at home, sleeping. Sebastian Ghita’s emergence on Romania’s public scene was nothing but spectacular.



    The young businessman became, via his IT firm, a favourite to winning contracts with the state, which are the most profitable ones, and a close ally of prolific politicians, such as the former PM Victor Ponta. His connections extended to include the exclusive circles of intelligence services.



    Pundits do not rule out the scenario according to which Sebastian Ghita is the creation of the intelligence services, which eventually lost control over him. Ghita’s statements regarding his relationship with the formed deputy chief of the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI), Florian Coldea, cost the latter his job.



    Ghita also tried to also cast suspicion on the chief prosecutor of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate (DNA) Laura Codruta Kovesi, but she denied any connection with the businessman. On the other hand, Sebastian Ghita learned from his famous predecessors Dan Voiculescu and Sorin Ovidiu Vantu, who are now behind bars, that he can achieve great influence on the public scene if he has the media backing him.



    So Ghita financed a TV news station with tabloid accents that targeted mainly his enemies and the enemies of his friends. Sebastian Ghita is very familiar with the courts too.



    He was prosecuted in two criminal cases, one that also involved former heads of the Police and Prosecutor’s Office in Prahova county and another one in which the former mayor of Ploiesti, Iulian Badescu, was also involved.



    Ghita is also prosecuted in another two corruption cases, one regarding the visit to Romania of former British PM Tony Blair in 2012. In the second case Ghita was investigated alongside Iulian Hertanu, the brother in law of the former PM Victor Ponta, accused of fraud with European funds and other offences.



  • February 17, 2017 UPDATE

    February 17, 2017 UPDATE

    ANTI-CORRUPTION – The Anti-Corruption Directorate ordered the criminal prosecution of the Mayor of Timisoara (in the west), Nicolae Robu, and of his predecessor, Gheorghe Ciuhandu, for abuse of office. Together with other current and former City Hall officials, the two are probed into in a case involving the illegal sale of nationalised buildings. According to prosecutors, between 1996 and 2015, the suspects breached their duties, to the effect that the buildings were not sold to the tenants who were entitled to purchase them, but rather to “influential individuals from Timisoara. Nearly 1,000 buildings have been illegally sold, with the damages incurred by the state reaching and estimated 40 million euros.




    EU TALKS – The PM of Romania, Sorin Grindeanu, had meetings in Brussels on Friday with the President of the European Commission, Jean Claude Junker, and the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk. During the talks, Grindeanu said his Cabinet was determined to carry on the fight against corruption. In turn, the European officials emphasised the need to consolidate the significant progress in the countrys anti-corruption efforts and to guarantee their irreversibility. The agenda of talks also included the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism, through which the European Commission monitors the judicial field in Romania, the priorities of the new Romanian Government, Romanias presidency of the EU Council in the first half of 2019, and current European topics. The Romanian Prime Ministers two-day visit also included meetings with the first vice-president of the European Commission, Frans Timmermans, and the vice-president of the European Commission Jirki Katainen.




    TENNIS – The Romanian Horia Tecău and the Dutch Jean-Julien Rojer will play on Saturday the doubles semi-finals of the Rotterdam tournament in the Netherlands, which has over 1.7 million euros in total prize money. They will be facing the Dutch Wesley Koolhof and Matwe Middelkoop. In the quarter-finals, Tecău and Rojer outplayed Feliciano Lopez and Marc Lopez of Spain, seeded 2nd in the tournament, 6-4 / 6-4. The Romanian-Dutch pair won the Rotterdam tournament in 2015.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • December 23, 2016 UPDATE

    December 23, 2016 UPDATE

    THE 1990 MINERS RAIDS FILE – Several former Romanian dignitaries, among whom the former president Ion Iliescu, the former prime minister Petre Roman and the former head of the Romanian Intelligence Service, Virgil Magureanu, on Friday were accused of crimes against humanity in the file “The Miners Raids of June 13-15, 1990. According to the prosecutors, the accused masterminded, organised and coordinated a generalised and systematic attack on those protesting in downtown Bucharest against the leftist Power, which ruled the country after the fall of the communist dictatorship in December 1989, as well as on the population of the capital city. The prosecutors claim that participating in the attack were forces of the Interior Ministry, the Defence Ministry and the Romanian Intelligence Service, adding to over ten thousand miners and workers coming to Bucharest from several regions of the country. Against the backdrop of violent incidents, that the Army had already stifled, the then president, Ion Iliescu, mentioned an attempted coup by the far right and called on the population to defend the democratic institutions. The Jiu Valley miners raids on Bucharest, where they stormed the University, the headquarters of the opposition parties and the offices of several independent newspapers, left four people dead and 1,200 injured. In 2014, the European Court of Human Rights issued a ruling imposing on Romania to continue investigations in the Miners Raids of June 1990 file.



    POSTPONED DESIGNATION OF PM – Romanias President Klaus Iohannis has postponed until after Christmas the designation of a new Prime Minister. He made the announcement after consultations held on Wednesday and Thursday with representatives of the political parties that made it to Parliament following December 11th legislative elections. The coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats has proposed for the office of prime minister the Social Democrat Sevil Shhaideh, a former Development Minister and the proposal of the Peoples Movement Party was Eugen Tomac. The National Liberal Party and the Save Romania Union have announced that will stay in the opposition and will not support a government formed around the Social Democratic Party. The Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania has signed a parliamentary collaboration agreement with the majority coalition.



    RADIO AND TV LICENCE FEE– Romanias President, Klaus Iohannis, has called on Parliament to reassess the law on the elimination of several taxes and of the radio and TV licence fee, because, although the law has been declared constitutional, its reassessment is necessary given the impact on the Romanian citizens. According to a communiqué issued by the Presidential Administration, the reduction of taxes should be accompanied by the improvement of administrative procedures and budgetary discipline. As regards the television and radio public media services, the president says the problems these institutions have been facing are old and systemic, and they are mainly generated by the legislative framework which regulates their functioning. According to the Romanian president, the debate on the elimination of the two licence fees and covering from the budget the functioning costs of the two radio and television public media services cant be limited to a simple question, namely whether or not it is necessary to collect a fee to support these institutions. The elimination of the radio and TV licence fee has been harshly criticised by Romanian and international media organisations which say the measure will affect the editorial autonomy of the two public media services.



    COMMEMORATION – A mass commemorating the martyr heroes of the 1989 anti-Communist revolution in Romania was held on Friday morning at Otopeni Airport near Bucharest. 27 years ago, 40 of the 82 soldiers sent to enhance security at Otopeni airport died, killed by the airport local security, who thought they were terrorists. 8 civilian airport employees, who were on their way to work by bus were also killed in the accidental shooting. The anti-Communist revolt started 27 years ago in Timisoara, western Romania, to then quickly spread all across the country. Over December 23-25, dictators Nicolae and Elena Ceausescu were caught, tried and executed. More than 1,000 people died in the revolution, and some 3,400 were wounded. Romania was the only country in the Eastern Bloc where the regime was changed violently and its communist leaders were executed.



    ALL POINTS BULLETIN – In Romania, the former Social– Democrat MP Sebastian Ghita, prosecuted for corruption and subject to legal restrictions pending trial, has disappeared and is now wanted by authorities. The Interior Minister Dragos Tudorache has called on the head of the police to carry out an internal investigation into the circumstances under which Ghita disappeared. The former MP, a close collaborator of the former Prime Minister Victor Ponta, is banned from leaving the country and must present himself to the police once a week. He is being prosecuted, among other things, for bribe-giving, influence peddling, money laundering and blackmail.



    SWEARING IN CEREMONY – The President -Elect of the Republic of Moldova, the pro-Russian Socialist Igor Dodon, officially started his term in office on Friday, in a solemn Parliament session. Dodon announced that his first visit abroad will be to Moscow, where he will try to resume the strategic partnership with the Russian Federation. Domestically, Igor Dodon will oppose the pro-Europe government in Chisinau and will try to dissolve Parliament in order to force early parliamentary elections. During his election campaign, Dodon said that his first decree would annul a law endorsed by parliament, under which the loan granted to the banking system in 2014 as a result of a 1 billion dollars embezzlement was turned into state debt. His announced priorities include banning the organisations that plead for the unification of the Republic of Moldova with Romania.



    SAFETY AND SECURITY MEASURES – The Romanian Interior Ministry has announced that some 22,000 police, fire fighters and gendarmes will be mobilised every day across Romania during the Christmas holidays. Also, the border police will operate at full capacity in order to reduce the waiting time for those who travel across the border. In Romanias mountain resorts, some 200 gendarmes will join the existing squads in order to be able to rapidly intervene should the tourists need it, the Interior Ministry has also stated.



    BERLIN ATTACK – The suspected perpetrator of the Berlin attack, the 24 year old Tunisian Anis Amri, was shot dead on Thursday to Friday night by the Milan police, the Italian Interior Ministry has announced. An international warrant had been issued for his arrest. He was fatally shot after firing at police who had stopped his car for a routine identity check. The Tunisian had connections with members of the Islamic State terrorist organisation, which claimed the attack in Berlin. We recall that the perpetrator drove a truck into a packed Christmas market in Berlin, Germany, on Monday, killing 12 people and injuring 48. In another move, on Thursday night, German police officers arrested two men suspected of having planned an attack on a shopping centre in Oberhausen, in the west, one of the largest shopping areas in Germany.



    HIJACKING – A Libyan plane with 118 people on board, on a domestic flight, landed in Malta, after having been hijacked. At the end of hours of negotiations with the Libyan authorities, the two hijackers released the passengers, the crew-members and turned themselves in. According to international news agencies, they are allegedly loyalists to former Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi.(Translated by M.Ignatescu and Diana Vijeu)

  • July 12, 2016 UPDATE

    July 12, 2016 UPDATE

    VISIT – The PM of Romania, Dacian Cioloş, attended on Tuesday in Hanoi the opening of a Romanian-Vietnamese business forum. He presented to Vietnamese business people Romanias main economic and geostrategic advantages and pleaded for stronger economic cooperation, relying on 66 years of good bilateral relations. PM Cioloş also spoke about the Romanian authorities special interest in developing trade with non-European countries with high potential, particularly south-east Asian states. In the first visit by a Romanian Prime Minister to that country in 21 years, Dacian Cioloş met with his counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc. Later this week, Ciolos will attend the 11th Europe-Asia Summit, held in Mongolias capital city Ulan Bator.




    STRIKE – Some 30,000 employees of the Romanian local public administration went on a one-day strike on Tuesday. Unionists were angered by the fact that the agreement they were scheduled to sign with the Government had been drawn up without including a minimum 25% salary increase and holiday vouchers, as agreed in previous negotiations. Civil servants also claim to be the poorest paid and the most discriminated against category in the public sector, with most of them earning close to the minimum national wage of 277 euros.




    ZIKA – Romania reported on Tuesday its first Zika virus infection case. A 27 year-old woman who spent a vacation in Martinique was identified with the illness while in hospital. The Health Ministry specified that the case was isolated, with minimal risk of spreading. The virus was identified in 1947 in Uganda, and is spread mainly by mosquitoes. It is able to produce congenital conditions in babies born of infected mothers. At present, no vaccine is available to counteract the virus, which so far has spread in South and Central America mainly.




    POLITICS – After two weeks of negotiations, the Peoples Movement Party headed by Romanias former right-wing president Traian Băsescu and the National Union for the Progress of Romania (UNPR) agreed to merge. Traian Băsescu made the announcement on Tuesday, and added that the new party will keep the name and logo of the Peoples Movement Party. The merger of UNPR into the Peoples Movement Party is the de facto dissolution of this small party that failed to set up any alliances with the Liberals and Social-Democrats ahead of this autumns parliamentary election. The founder of UNPR, former interior minister and deputy PM Gabriel Oprea, withdrew from the party after he was prosecuted in two corruption-related cases.




    RAIL CRASH – Romanias consular office in Catania took note of the railway accident in the south of Italy and contacted the Italian authorities to establish whether there were any Romanian citizens among the victims, the Foreign Ministry has announced. Scores of people died or were injured on Tuesday after two passenger trains collided in one of the worst such accidents in Italy in years. According to the Radio Romania correspondent in Italy, around 5,700 Romanians currently live on the Adriatic coast near Bari, where the accident took place.




    BRITAIN – The outgoing Prime Minister David Cameron Tuesday chaired the last meeting of the British Cabinet before handing over on Wednesday to Home Secretary, Theresa May, who will implement the British citizens decision to leave the European Union. Theresa May will be in charge with triggering Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, which regulates the procedure for member countries to leave the EU and sets a 2-year deadline for completing the separation. Theresa May will be the second woman nominated as Britains Prime Minister, after Margaret Thatcher.

  • July 11, 2016 UPDATE

    July 11, 2016 UPDATE

    CANADA VISAS – Canada confirmed on Monday in Brussels its promise to announce early this autumn a decision as concerns lifting visa requirements for Romanians and Bulgarians, the only EU citizens which cannot travel freely to Canada. Also in Brussels, the chief of staff to Romanias PM Dragoş Tudorache said that Romania had clear expectations regarding the removal of visa requirements for Romanian citizens. The Canadian Immigration Minister John McCallum discussed the topic with Romanian and Bulgarian officials, in the presence of the European Commissioner for Migration Dimitris Avramopoulos. Romania and Bulgaria have announced they will not ratify the EU-Canada trade agreement until Canada has lifted visa requirements.



    ASIA VISIT – Romanian PM Dacian Ciolos started on Monday a tour of Asia, beginning with a four-day official visit to Vietnam. On Friday and Saturday he is to attend the 11th Europe-Asia Summit, in the Mongolian capital Ulan Bator. The main aims of the visit are resuming political contact with Asian states, as well as recovering traditional markets for Romanian exporters, while encouraging investment in Romania. The agenda in Hanoi includes talks with the PM, President, and other Vietnamese officials. Ciolos will also attend the Romania-Vietnam Economic Forum, with a delegation of over 20 business representatives from Romania, to identify new business opportunities that would fully take advantage of the future EU-Vietnam free trade agreement.



    LAW – President Klaus Iohannis Monday endorsed a law that binds supermarkets to stock their shelves with at least 51% Romanian products, and forbids them from requiring fees and services from suppliers. Retailers with an annual net turnover of below two million Euro are exempt from the new regulations.



    NATO SUMMIT – Defence Minister Mihnea Motoc said on Monday that the Romanian delegation to the recently concluded NATO summit in Warsaw covered all the issues it was mandated to approach by Romania’s Higher Defence Council. He emphasized the fact that NATO’s new deterrence posture, with a strong forward presence, which is of major interest to Romania, is manifest on the eastern flank of the Alliance in the Baltic area, and in the Black Sea region.



    ASSASINATION – The Romanian Foreign Ministry has expressed its deepest regrets after the death of Romanias honorary consul to El Salvador, Emanuel Ricardo Salume Barake, and sent condolences to his family. The Ministry, which stays in touch with the local authorities, has also expressed hopes that the perpetrators of the murder will be brought to justice. Emanuel Ricardo Salume Barake was appointed honorary consul of Romania in 1994. Honorary consuls are not employees of the Romanian Government, nor paid for their services. They are chosen from among the Romanian or foreign citizens living in a particular state, the Romanian Foreign Ministry explains.



    UK Prime Minister – Home Secretary Theresa May is set to be Britains new Prime Minister by Wednesday evening, as David Cameron announced on Monday. May said that under her leadership the UK will stay fully committed to leaving the EU, in spite of her support for the “remain campaign in the referendum. Brexit will be a success, and together we will build a better Britain, May also said. Theresa May was the only candidate left in the race for Tory leadership after her main challenger, Energy Minister Andrea Leadsom withdrew. The new PM will have to call Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, which regulates the procedure for member countries to leave the European Union, and sets a 2-year deadline for finalising the separation, AFP reports.

  • The Week in Review, 23-29 May, 2016

    The Week in Review, 23-29 May, 2016

    Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos pays official visit to Washington


    US vice-president Joe Biden received at the White House Romanian Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos. The Strategic Partnership between the two countries and economic cooperation were the main topics on the agenda for talks, along with preparing the NATO Summit of Warsaw in July. Joe Biden has reiterated the United States support, both at bilateral and at NATO level, to consolidating security and defense in the Euro-Atlantic area. Prime Minister Ciolos has called on the US to deploy a NATO-led multi-national brigade on Romanias territory in order to strengthen the security of NATOs southeastern flank. Joe Biden highlighted that Romania has been and continues to be a trusted ally and partner of the United States, referring to both countries interest to access the untapped potential for developing the economic cooperation between Romania and the US. Dacian Ciolos also discussed with other Washington officials and with representatives of the US business sector, whom he encouraged to invest in Romania. The Prime Minister also met with members of the Romanian community.



    New Health Minister for Romania


    Ensuring cheap and effective medication in hospitals and reducing the incidence of hospital-acquired infections are among the priorities of the new Health Minister, Vlad Voiculescu. The Romanian official wants to use European funding to build three regional hospitals in Iasi, Cluj and Craiova. Vlad Voiculescu also wants to change management contracts, investment plans for hospital laboratories and to improve the Ministrys control mechanisms. All these measures, Vlad Voiculescu argues, are aimed at restoring patients trust in the Romanian healthcare system.



    Negotiations continue between trade unions in the education sector and the Government


    Negotiations between the Romanian Government and trade unions representing the education system continued this week. Previously, the Government had proposed an average increase of 10% in the salaries of the teaching staff, to come into effect starting August 2017. Unionists have rejected the Governments offer regarding the budget allocations to education, which they see as insufficient. Trade unions say that unless an agreement is reached at the forthcoming round of talks, they would stage a rally in Bucharest on June 1. In turn, Labour Minister Dragos Pislaru has announced that the implementation of the Governments ordinance on adjusting the salaries of some 6,000 employees in the education sector starting January 1, 2017 would entail a financial effort worth 800 million lei.



    NATO to focus on the Balkans


    NATO officials plan on focusing on the Balkans at the forthcoming NATO Summit to be hosted by Warsaw in July. NATO Assistant Secretary General Sorin Ducaru says Montenegros NATO accession could create the premises for restoring stability in the region. NATO is currently facing the most complex challenges and risks since the Cold War, coming from the east and the south, Sorin Ducaru added. Romania currently has 690 military deployed in NATO operations abroad.



    Bucharest hosts plenary session of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance


    The working definition of anti-Semitism was adopted at the plenary session of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance hosted by Bucharest between May 23 and 26. Romania is holding the presidency of this Alliance from 2016 to 2017. The 31 member states of the Alliance reconfirmed through this decision their commitment to observing the Stockholm Declaration and to making efforts to fight anti-Semitism. 240 experts and decision makers talked about policies and projects in the field of education, research and Holocaust remembrance from the perspective of their contemporary political relevance.



    Romania does not agree with amending the EU directive on posted workers


    Romania does not agree with the modification of the EU directive on posted workers, the Romanian deputy prime minister and minister of economy and trade, Costin Borc said in Brussels. He pointed out that the Romanian workers should not be discriminated against. The European Commission has proposed the modification of the ceiling for salaries to which posted workers are entitled. The current directive stipulates that posted workers have the right to a minimum salary. 11 EU members have expressed opposition to the modification of the directive. Given the circumstances, the European Commission has to revise its proposal or to withdraw it.



    Cluj is the venue for the Transylvania International Film Festival


    The 15th edition of the Transylvania International Film Festival- TIFF has opened in Cluj Napoca, in western Romania, with the film “6.9 on the Richter scale screened for the first time in the presence of its director, Nae Caranfil. 248 productions will be screened until June 5. For the first time at the TIFF, the film “Dogs, winner of this years critics prize at the Cannes Festival, will be screened. The special guest of the 2016 edition of the TIFF is actress Sophia Loren, who came to Romania for the first time. She will receive the Lifetime Achievement Award.

  • February 16, 2016, UPDATE

    February 16, 2016, UPDATE

    As of Tuesday the President of the Republic of Moldova Nicolae Timofti is on an official visit to Bucharest. On Wednesday he is to have talks with his counterpart Klaus Iohannis, with PM Dacian Cioloş, with the Senate Speaker Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu, as well as other Romanian officials. The topics to be discussed in Bucharest include bilateral relations, the European accession efforts of the Republic of Moldova, and the economic, political and social cooperation between the two countries. Timoftis visit comes after on Friday the Moldovan PM, Pavel Filip, announced that Romania would provide aid to Moldova in the context of the economic and social crisis that this country is struggling with. The aid will consist in food products intended for underprivileged people and heavy fuel to increase Moldovas reserves in case its natural gas supply is discontinued.



    The Romanian PM Dacian Cioloş presented the priorities of his term in office to the head of the European Parliament Martin Schulz, during a visit to Brussels on Tuesday. On this occasion, PM Ciolos said Romania must be a more active EU member state and become more deeply involved in the issues on the EU agenda. In turn, in the joint press conference after the meeting, the EP President said that talks had approached, among others, the refugee crisis and the situation in the Republic of Moldova. On Monday, the first day of his visit to Brussels, the head of the Romanian government had a meeting with the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker.



    The head of the National Centre for Infectious Disease, Dr. Adriana Pistol, said on Tuesday that Bucharest requested international assistance for the hospitalised children from Arges County in the south. The cases involve severe digestive infection followed by complications in children aged up to two years, but the source is yet unknown. Three children died since the beginning of the month, and ten are treated in Bucharest. The Prime Ministers Control Corps announced it would initiate its own investigation in the case. Meanwhile, the Health Minister, Patriciu Achimaş-Cadariu, will present a report on this case to the Committee on healthcare and family in the Chamber of Deputies.



    The Government of Romania will present on Wednesday, in a public debate, a programme designed to fight poverty. The plan, entitled “Integrated Package on Poverty Reduction, consists in around 50 measures, primarily addressing children. These measures include the funding of ultrasound tests for pregnant women, of vaccines, the set-up of day-care facilities for pre-school children and the granting of facilities to reduce school dropout rates. According to the Government, some 1.7 million children in Romania are threatened by poverty, especially in rural communities.



    The former UN Secretary General, Butros Butros Ghali, has died at the age of 93. He had been admitted to a hospital in Cairo, last week. The Egyptian Butros Butros Ghali was the first African to hold the post of secretary general of the United Nations, and served between 1992 and 1996.

  • February 14, 2016 UPDATE

    February 14, 2016 UPDATE

    The President of Romania Klaus Iohannis is scheduled to have a meeting in Bucharest on Monday with the President of the European Council, Donald Tusk. The meeting will precede the European Council meeting of February 18 -19, when a political agreement may be reached regarding Britains requests for a change in the rules governing the European Union. According to the British Prime Minister David Cameron, the UK has made its future EU membership conditional on the adoption of these changes. A referendum will be held in Britain, possibly in June, regarding the countrys exit from the European Union.



    The Romanian Prime Minister Dacian Cioloş will make a visit to Brussels on Monday and Tuesday, to talk to high EU officials, including the President of the European Commission, Jean-Claude Juncker, and the President of the European Parliament, Martin Schulz. The Romanian PM will present the priorities of his Cabinet, his economic development strategy, the administrative reform programme as well as the manner in which Romania intends to get involved in the current European debates. The talks will also approach the issue of migration, the energy union and energy security, the progress made by Romania under the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism as indicated in the latest report of the European Commission, as well as the prospects for Romanias Schengen accession. Dacian Cioloş will also have talks with the European Commissioner for Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement, Johannes Hahn, with the European Commissions vice-president in charge with budget and human resources, Kristalina Georgieva, as well as with Romanian experts holding key posts in EU institutions.



    The Parliament of Romania convenes on Monday, to discuss, among other things, a request sent by President Klaus Iohannis regarding the participation of the Romanian Army in the training of the Iraqi security forces, as part of the international coalition against the IS terrorist group. Romania will send 50 military personnel from fields such as special security forces, military intelligence and land troops, to train the Iraqi army. Klaus Iohannis has requested Parliament to approve this mission, which is to take place in 2016 alone.



    The President of Russia Vladimir Putin and his American counterpart Barack Obama agreed, during a telephone conversation on Sunday, to strengthen cooperation through diplomatic agencies and other entities to implement the Munich agreement on Syria, the Kremlin announced, according to Reuters. World leaders agreed on Friday on a temporary ceasefire in Syria, to begin in a week. According to the Russian presidency, during the talks participants reiterated the need for closer contacts between the Russian and American militaries, which would enable them to successfully tackle the IS and other terrorist groups. The two officials also discussed the importance of creating a common front against terrorism. The Syria situation was the key issue discussed at the Munich Security Conference these days.



    The Romanian Foreign Minister, Lazăr Comănescu, is taking part on Monday in Brussels in a meeting of the Foreign Affairs Council. The EU ministers will discuss a number of topical issues, including the political and economic situation in the Republic of Moldova and the ways in which the EU may assist this country, the prospects for the EU – Belarus relations, the recent developments in Syria from a humanitarian point of view and the outcomes of the February 4th Conference in London. The European officials will also exchange opinions with the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Immigration of Lebanon, Gebran Bassil, regarding the relations between the EU and Lebanon, and will analyse aspects of mutual interest related to the impact of the Syrian and Libyan crises on the Middle East region.


    (translation by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • Talks over the formation of a new government

    Talks over the formation of a new government

    The structure of the government will remain the same, but its ministers will not be members of any political parties, as the technocratic prime minister designate Dacian Ciolos prefers to work with professionals like himself, who are unaffiliated politically. However, it’s up to Parliament to approve the new government and its programme, so Dacian Ciolos has had talks with the leaders of all parliamentary parties and groups.



    On Thursday, he met the former president of Romania and current leader of the People’s Movement Party, Traian Basescu, the former head of the Social Democratic Party and current leader of the Romanian Social Party Mircea Geoana as well as with Daniel Fenechiu, from the National Democratic Party, formerly the Dan Diaconescu People’s Party. These parties may not have many seats in Parliament, but Ciolos can’t afford to ignore anyone.



    Dacian Ciolos: “I have had talks with the parties to present them with my cabinet’s major priorities […] and to see what their sensitivities are, while keeping in mind that we will not be able to include all their suggestions into our government programme. I am currently working on this programme and establishing the names of the new ministers. Naturally, they will be given time, after taking over their posts, to see what they can do. On the other hand, I am aware that we are a technocratic government and that after the investiture vote, the majority will be created in Parliament and we will have to negotiate major bills one at a time.”



    Traian Basescu and Mircea Geoana said their MPs would vote in favour of the Ciolos cabinet, while Daniel Fenechiu said his party would also most likely support it. The major parties expressed their positions on Wednesday. Dacian Ciolos can so far count on the votes of the pro-presidential National Liberal Party, the National Union for the Progress of Romania, a former junior partner in the coalition government of outgoing prime minister Victor Ponta, as well as the 18 MPs from the group of ethnic minorities.



    The Social Democratic Party, the major party in the former government, its allies the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe, as well as the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania in opposition say they will decide whether to support the new cabinet after the publication of the list of new ministers, the programme for government and the ministers’ performance when interviewed in Parliament.



    Commentators are convinced the Ciolos government will pass Parliament’s vote and recall that Romania has had a positive experience with politically independent prime ministers before. In the 1990s, the technocratic prime ministers Teodor Stolojan and Mugur Isarescu both led governments that ensured the country’s economic stability and organised fair general elections before handing over to politicians. The same tasks now face the technocratic cabinet of Dacian Ciolos in 2016, a year with both local and parliamentary elections, thus giving a discredited political class time to reinvent itself and regain people’s trust.


    (Translated by C. Mateescu / Edited by E. Enache)