EU – Romania, which joined the community bloc on January 1, 2007, is holding the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union for the first time, as from January 1, 2019. Romania has taken over the presidency from Austria and hands it over to Finland, in July. Romania will stand the chance and equally will have the responsability to prove and capitalise on its potential and its European valences in an effort to boost what it means the European construction, to achieve a union of citizens, freedoms, joint efforts and capacities, Romanian PM Viorica Dăncilă, said on Tuesday in a video message marking Romanias taking over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. Members of the European Commission, led by Jean-Claude Juncker, will arrive in Bucharest on January 10 for talks on the priorities of the Romanian Presidency. Great Britains leaving the community bloc, negotiations on the EU budget for 2021-2027 and European Parliamentary elections scheduled for May 2019 will render the agenda of the Presidency of the Council of the European Union more complex. Against the backdrop of such challenges, Romania intends to promote during its 6-month tenure a pragmatic vision, focussed mainly on the principle of European cohesion at all levels: political, economic and social, the Romanian Foreign Ministry underlines. The priorities of the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union are based on four main action pillars: Europe of convergence- growth, cohesion, competitiveness, connectivity, Europe of safety, Europe, a global actor and Europe of common, shared values. The official site of the Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union has also been launched. The webpage available in Romanian, English and French at “romania2019.eu offers useful information for journalists, the public at large and experts on European affairs.
MESSAGES – In his New Year message, the President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis has urged the Romanians to capitalise on the opportunity of holding the Presidency of the Council of the European Union as from January 1, 2019 to prove that “Romania is seriously involved in consolidating the European project. In her turn, Romanian PM Viorica Dăncilă said Romania is ready and prepared to hold the Presidency of the Council of the European Union. She has underlined that this is a country project which should unite the state institutions, the political parties and civil society. In turn, the Senate Speaker, Călin Popescu-Tăriceanu, expresses confidence that 2019 will bring changes for the better to Romania, which should consolidate its position within the European Union. The Speaker of the Chamber of Deputies, Liviu Dragnea, has said Romania has a huge development potential and can play a major role in Europe and not only.
FINANCIAL – As from January 1st, the minimum wage in the Romanian economy has gone up to 445 Euros, 505 Euros for higher education graduates and to 645 Euros in the constructions sector, respectively. State sector employees will get higher salaries, with the exception of healthcare employees, as well meal bonuses, but they will no longer be paid for doing extra-hours, which will be compensated with hours off.
CELEBRATIONS – Hundreds of thousands of Romanian revellers spent the night at the turn of the year in the street, attending various events organised in big cities across the country. In Bucharest, the City Hall organised an open air party, under the slogan “The Centennial New Years Eve Party, a show which marked 100 years since the setting up of the Romanian national unitary state. Performing onto the stage mounted in front of the Palace of Parliament were Delia, Antonia and Smiley, among others. The special guest of the event was the internationally acclaimed DJ, Andre Tanneberger, aka ATB. Grandiose fireworks crowned the show in the Constitution Square. Tighter security measures have been taken across the country, with over 25,000 employees of the Interior Ministry being mobilised to maintain order. Prevention and rescue missions in case of emergency situations have been accomplished by over 4,900 fire-fighters. Teams of paramedics have been dispatched in the proximity of public venues. 300 SMURD medical teams of the Service for Emergency Situations were also ready to intervene in case of medical emergencies.
JOURNALISTS – The number of journalists and mass-media employees who died while doing their job increased to 94 in 2018, as compared to 82 in 2017, according to the International Federation of Journalists. The victims included 84 journalists, camera operators and technicians, as well as 10 staff members, among whom drivers and protection officers. They were assassinated, deliberately targeted at, or died in bomb attacks or skirmishes. Data released by the International Federation of Journalists actually show the current security and safety crisis in journalism, marked by the cruel killing of Washington Posts Saudi editorialist, Jamal Khashoggi, who was murdered at the Saudi Consulate in Istanbul, in October. This was the latest in a series of devastating attacks on media professionals, including multiple bomb attacks which turned Afghanistan into a lethal area for journalists.
TENNIS – Romanian woman tennis player, Monica Niculescu (no.99 WTA), on Tuesday defeated Latvian Jelena Ostapenko (no.22 WTA), in the first round of the Shenzhen tournament in China, with over 750,000 dollars in prize money up for grabs. Monica will face, on Wednesday, in the eighth finals, the Czech Kristyna Pliskova (no.94 WTA). Also on Tuesday, in Shenzhen, another Romanian, Sorana Cîrstea (no.84 WTA) defeated the French Pauline Parmentier (no. 55 WTA) 6-2, 6-2 and qualified to the next stage of the competition. In the quarters, Sorana will face the American Alison Riske (no.62 WTA).
