Radio România Internațional

Tag: reshuffle

  • Plans for a government restructuring

    Plans for a government restructuring

    The idea of a government restructuring has been circulating for a few days in Romania. However, the Social Democrats, the senior partners in the ruling coalition, are split over the timeliness of this move: while some support the idea of a cabinet with fewer ministries, others are categorically opposed to it. One side says the government must be streamlined and rendered more efficient to allow the Social Democratic Party to carry through its governing platform, while the other believes the government needs continuity, without conflicts and rivalries.



    The Prime Minister Mihai Tudose is in favour of restructuring, saying 28 ministries is too much. Asked by journalists about his opinion, the Social Democratic leader Liviu Dragnea gave an ambiguous answer, which reflects the conflicting views within his party. He also pointed out that a final decision cannot be taken without consulting with their coalition partners, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats.



    Liviu Dragnea: “One possibility is to restructure the cabinet, another to reshuffle it. Its also possible that none of these happen and instead we rethink the administrative decision-making process within ministries. In fact, we will have a comprehensive discussion about this at our next Executive Committee meeting. We also have to discuss this subject with our partners, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, because the restructuring of the government needs to be approved by Parliament.



    The defence minister Mihai Fifor more or less shares this view:



    Mihai Fifor: “Its prime minister Mihai Tudoses right to propose a different structure for his cabinet if he feels its necessary, but these are matters that have to be discussed and decided within the coalition, for we are not governing on our own but together with the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, and also by the Social Democratic Partys Executive Committee, namely the partys decision-making body.



    The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats says it heard nothing from the prime minister about the plans to restructure the cabinet and calls on him to focus on the countrys prosperity, so that Romanians may feel the benefits of the economic growth. The leader of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, Calin Popescu Tariceanu:



    Calin Popescu Tariceanu: “People are not very interested in how many times we meet every week, how many meetings the government holds and how many ministers it has. They are, however, interested in the quality of the political decisions made in Parliament and the quality of government. These are the things we should focus on, and not on disputes I sometimes view as sterile, useless, and, whats worse, damaging. I have no direct information from the prime minister about plans to restructure the cabinet. The make-up of this government is the result of the coalition between the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats and of a protocol agreed on and approved by the two parties in December 2016, after the elections.



    The Social Democratic Party will discuss a possible government restructuring at a meeting of its Executive Committee scheduled to take place in Iasi, in the north-east, between the 29th and the 31st of January.


    (translated by: Cristina Mateescu)

  • January 8, 2018 UPDATE

    January 8, 2018 UPDATE

    PSD Mihai Tudose, Prime Minister of the leftist government in Bucharest, on Monday said at the end of a session of the National Executive Committee of the main ruling Social Democratic Party (PSD) that he didn’t give up the idea of a cabinet reshuffle. Tudose added the issue would be tackled in detail in another Executive Committee session due in Iasi, eastern Romania in late January. The Social Democrats have also decided to propose senator Ioan Denes for the seat of the Ministry of Waters and Forests after his colleague Doina Pana has recently stepped down on health reasons. Besides Prime Minister Tudose, the PSD-ALDE government has 27 ministers, out of whom three deputy Prime Ministers and two delegate ministers.




    BNR The board of directors of Romania’s Central Bank (BNR) on Monday decided to raise the reference interest rate to 2% a year from 1.7%. According to a BNR communiqué the decision is to come into effect on Tuesday. Another decision is to maintain the present levels of obligatory minimum reserves on debts in the local and foreign currency of credit institutions, the BNR communiqué also says.




    SHIPWRECK 64 migrants are believed to have lost their lives in the first major shipwreck this year in the Mediterranean sea off the coasts of Libya, the International Migration Organization has announced. 86 survivors of various African nationalities have been transported back to Libya. According to the IOM about 170 thousand migrants made it to Europe by crossing the Mediterranean last year, most of them fleeing the armed Middle East conflicts and the poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa.




    MEASLES The death toll of the measles outbreak in Romania has reached 38, the National Centre for the Supervision and Control of Transmissible Diseases with the National Public Healthcare Institute has announced. According to the same sources, the confirmed infections have exceeded 10,300 with the most number of cases reported in unvaccinated people. In another development, Health Minister Florian Bodog has called on all the public healthcare institutions to check on all advertising billboards promoting information campaigns on vaccination. The measure has been decided after a series of anti-vaccination billboards were mounted in several Romanian cities and towns late last year, the Healthcare Ministry has announced.




    AWARD The production “Graduation” by the Romanian director Cristian Mungiu was named best foreign film by the National Society of Film Critics, one of the most prestigious associations of film critics in the Unites States. In 2017, the award went to “Toni Erdmann”, a production with Romanian contribution directed by Maren Ade. Established in 1966 in New York, the National Society of Film Critics comprises 59 members, including journalists for leading American publications. “Graduation” is about a doctor in a small Romanian town who does everything he can to make sure his daughter is accepted into a British university after the latter suffers sexual aggression right before the start of high school graduation exams. The production has received many international prizes, such as best director award at Cannes Film Festival in 2016.



    Translated by Daniel Bilt


  • October 16, 2017 UPDATE

    October 16, 2017 UPDATE

    GOVT RESHUFFLE – The Presidential Administration Monday announced it received from PM Mihai Tudose the nominations for the new ministers, namely Paul Stănescu for the Development Ministry, Felix Stroe for the Transport Ministry and Marius Nica for the Ministry for European Funds. The nominations were made by the Social Democratic Party, the main party in the ruling coalition in Bucharest. The three are to replace the outgoing ministers Sevil Shhaideh, Rovana Plumb and Răzvan Cuc, who have decided to step down so that the activity of the Government may not be affected. Shhaideh and Plumb are prosecuted for corruption-related offences, while Cuc was criticised for the inadequate performance of his ministry. The junior partner in the ruling coalition, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania, has announced the party will not withraw support for Viorel Ilie, the minister in charge with liaising with Parliament, who is probed into for influence peddling.




    SANCTIONS – The EU foreign ministers adopted, in Mondays Foreign Affairs Council meeting in Luxembourg, new sanctions against North Korea in response to Pyongyangs nuclear test in early September. Among other things, the sanctions include bans on oil exports and on all EU investments in DPRK in all sectors, and lowering the remittances that the North Koreans working in the EU may transfer home, from 15,000 euros at present to 5,000 euros. Romania was represented at the meeting by Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu. The agenda of the talks also included other topics, such as the Iranian nuclear deal and the situation in Turkey.




    DEFENCE – The Romanian Defence Minister, Mihai Fifor, Monday had a meeting with the US Congressmen Steve Russell and Matt Cartwright, who are currently in Bucharest. The talks focused on security at the Black Sea and the development of the strategic partnership between Romania and the US in the defence sector. According to the Romanian Defence Ministry, Mihai Fifor emphasised the importance of a coordinated approach on the entire eastern flank of NATO, and underlying Romanias role as a predictable and solid partner in ensuring Euro-Atlantic stability and security. The participants appreciated the excellent cooperation between the Romanian and American forces in the exercises taking place as part of the Alliance and in the NATO theatres.




    VESSEL – Two Romanians onboard a vessel held in the Libyan port of Tobrouk were repatriated on Monday, the Romanian Foreign Ministry announced. According to the institution, since the case was notified the Romanian Embassy to Tripoli, which has been relocated to Tunis, has made numerous efforts to clarify the situation of the two Romanian citizens, contacting both the local authorities and the ship owner. The Romanian diplomatic mission was also in permanent contact with the commander of the ship and with the Romanian citizens and their families. In order to avoid similar situations in the future, the Foreign Ministry urges the Romanian sailors interested in working on vessels belonging to foreign owners to get thoroughly informed on the status of the respective vessels and to find employers via crewing agencies accredited by the Romanian Naval Authority.





    TRADE WINDS – The largest trade promotion event organized annually by the American Department of Commerce, Trade Winds, will bring to Bucharest between October 18-20 as many as 100 American companies which will get in contact with over 50 Romanian companies. Participating in the event are big American companies such as IBM, Patriot – Raytheon, Kestral, Harris Corporation (space intelligence), SAS Institute (software), Perry Baromedical Corporation (a producer of medical equipment) as well SMEs from the US which are of interest for Romania especially in terms of know-how transfer and innovation. The event will be attended by the Romanian PM and several other ministers. According to a government news release, the initiative of the American Department of Commerce to organize the 10th edition of Trade Winds in Romania and another 4 states in South-eastern Europe, namely Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece and Serbia, proves the importance the US Administration attaches to this region and to Bucharest in particular.




    SPAIN – Catalonias regional president Carles Puigdemont, has announced in a letter to Madrid that his government was seeking a two-month respite, for further talks with Spains central government. PM Mariano Rajoy had given the secessionist authorities of Catalonia until Monday to confirm whether the region had declared its independence from Spain, and until Thursday to abandon its secession plans altogether. Reuters says that without a clear answer on Monday, Madrid may impose direct control on Catalonia. In the octombrie 1 referendum, ruled illegal by the Spanish national court and marred by police violence, nearly 2 million out of Catalonias 5.3 million voters, with 90% of the votes in favour of secession.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • Cabinet resignations in Romania

    Cabinet resignations in Romania

    Deputy prime minister Sevil Shhaideh, the minister for European funds Rovana Plumb and the transport minister Razvan Cuc have decided to resign from Mihai Tudoses Social Democratic cabinet. Tudose had earlier called for Shhaidehs and Plumbs resignations despite the two ministers wide support within the party, invoking the image problems they cause as a result of their involvement in a corruption case. However, Mihai Tudose does not see these ministers departure as a personal victory, and denies the existence of a conflict within the party.



    Mihai Tudose: “Both Sevil Shhaideh and Rovana [Plumb] came to me with their resignations as soon as they were subpoenaed by the National Anticorruption Directorate. We did not accept their resignations so as not to cause the impression of chaos in the government. My two cabinet colleagues have reached the end of their patience. Speaking of war, yes, I did mention the possibility of resigning if the party asks me to and if I realise I am no longer able to carry out my governing programme. There was no war, there is no victor, the only winner as far as were concerned, after this long day, should be the party, and thus the government, and thus the country.



    The leader of the Social Democratic Party Liviu Dragnea has put the internal disturbance down to a breakdown in communication between himself and the prime minister.



    Liviu Dragnea: “We didnt communicate well. I take responsibility for it, and I believe he has, too. We can no longer make such mistakes, namely to put the party and the coalition and the parliamentary majority and the government in such as a situation. The message I would like to convey as president of the party is that I do not want any institution, regardless of its nature, to believe that this party will let itself be subjugated in its political or governing activity, in any way.



    This was seen as a transparent reference to an alleged attempt by the National Anticorruption Directorate to undermine the Social Democratic Party and the government.



    This view is shared by Calin Popescu Tariceanu, the president of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, the Social Democrats junior coalition partner: “I believe all accusations made by the National Anticorruption Directorate at this point should be examined carefully; we cannot allow the National Anticorruption Directorate to have a say in the government, whenever it chooses to do so.



    Romanias president Klaus Iohannis said prime minister Tudose was right to rid his cabinet of ministers who are having problems with the law.



    Klaus Iohannis: “I believe the prime minister is well-intended and wishes to have a good cabinet. On the other hand, both Romanian citizens and I are waiting for the Social Democratic Party to produce some tangible results, now that almost one year has passed since it won the elections.



    The Social Democratic Party has narrowly avoided a dangerous internal crisis. In June, the open rebellion of the then prime minister Sorin Grindeanu against Liviu Dragnea forced the party to do something no other ruling party in Romania has ever done, namely to bring down its own cabinet through a vote of no-confidence.

  • October 12, 2017

    October 12, 2017

    GOVT RESHUFFLE – The National Executive Committee of the Social Democratic Party, the main party in the coalition in power in Romania, convenes today to discuss the government reshuffle requested by PM Mihai Tudose. During the same meeting, the relations between the government and the party are to be clarified. Over the past few days the PM has discussed the reshuffle both with President Klaus Iohannis, and with the Social Democratic leader, Liviu Dragnea. The names the most frequently mentioned in the media in relation to the reshuffle are Sevil Shhaideh, deputy PM and Minister for Regional Development, and Rovana Plumb, minister delegate for European funds, both of them members of the Social Democratic Party and prosecuted for corruption offences. The minister in charge with liaising with Parliament, Viorel Ilie, a member of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania, the junior partner in the ruling coalition, is also in a similar situation. Other ministers with image problems may also be replaced.




    PACE – The Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe is discussing in an emergency meeting in Strasbourg today Ukraines new and controversial education law. The talk, proposed by the Romanian delegation with support from 5 other national delegations, comes after Ukraine enacted a law that severely restricts access to mother tongue education for ethnic minorities in that country. Senator Titus Corlăţean, the head of the Romanian delegation and also a vice-president of PACE, told Radio Romanias correspondent in Strasbourg that he was hoping for a fair debate, able to persuade the Ukrainian authorities to amend the law. Under the new legislation, ethnic minority children will be able to study in their respective mother tongues only in kindergarten and primary schools, and then they will have to study in Ukrainian exclusively. On Wednesday, the President of Ukraine, Petro Poroshenko, promised PACE that Kiev would bring the new act in line with all the conclusions of the Venice Commission and would comply with the European Charter for regional or minority languages. Nearly half a million ethnic Romanians live in the neighbouring country, most of them in the Romanian territories annexed by the USSR in 1940, further to an ultimatum, and taken over by Ukraine as a successor state in 1991.




    AUTOMOTIVE – President Klaus Iohannis and PM Mihai Tudose took part on Thursday in the launch of the new Ford Ecosport model, at the Ford plant in Craiova, southern Romania. The head of state said that, by attending the event, he intends to convey a strong message of support for the automotive industry in Romania, which is growing increasingly competitive and has a better and better image in the European market. Since it took over the plant in 2008, Ford has invested over one billion euros in the production unit in Romania. More than 2,800 people are employed by Ford Craiova. The biggest carmaker in Romania is Automobile Dacia, based in Pitesti, in the south, taken over by the French group Renault in 1999. Over 13,500 people are working for this company, which has a turnover of over 4.3 billion euros.




    SPAIN – Spain is celebrating its National Day today, amid tensions between the separatist authorities of Catalonia and the central government in Madrid. PM Mariano Rajoy gave the regional Catalan leader Carles Puigdemont until Monday to give up plans to declare the regions independence, otherwise Catalonia would see its local autonomy suspended. Rajoy accused the Catalan government of having generated one of the most difficult times in Spains democracy and of having staged a very dangerous attack against the Constitution, the unity of Spain, the Catalan state and, most importantly, against Spains people living together.




    MOLDOVA – The European Union announced it would not grant the Republic of Moldova the remaining 28 million euros under the reform programme, intended for changes in the field of the judiciary. The Union believes the Government in Chisinau has failed to meet the conditions requested by Brussels. The EU delegation in Moldova mentions in a news release that the authorities in Moldova have shown poor commitment for reform, have not allotted enough funding and staff and, as a result, progress in terms of judicial reforms has been insufficient. Last week, PM Pavel Filip announced Moldova would no longer receive this years instalment of the 100 million euro aid programme provided by the EU. He admitted that the measure had been prompted by Chisinaus decision to change the election system for the forthcoming parliamentary elections, in such a manner as to favour the major parties.




    HANDBALL – The Romanian womens handball champions CSM Bucharest Wednesday night outplayed the Polish side Vistal Gdynia, 34-23, in an away game in Champions League Group A. This is the second win for CSM, after on Saturday night they defeated the Slovenians Krim Mercator Ljubljana, 30-18 at home. The Romanian side are next to play Nykoebing Falster Handboldklub of Denmark, on October 22. CSM Bucharest won the Champions League in 2016, when it first took part in the competition, and is one of the favourites to win this inter-club competition.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • October 10, 2017 UPDATE

    October 10, 2017 UPDATE

    RESHUFFLE — A decision on the relations between the Romanian Government and the main ruling party, the Social Democratic Party, PSD, as well as another decision on a prospective reshuffle of the Government will be made on Thursday by the National Executive Committee of PSD, Prime Minister Mihai Tudose and the PSD leader, Liviu Dragnea, announced on Tuesday. Earlier, the Prime Minister had made public his decision to reshuffle his cabinet. He underlined that several members of the Government who are involved in criminal investigations or whose performance has been unsatisfactory will be replaced. According to the Prime Minister, these Ministers mar the image of the Government and in some cases its relationship with the European Commission. Also on Tuesday, PM Mihai Tudose met with President Klaus Iohannis for talks about his intention to replace several members of his cabinet. According to the spokesperson for the Presidency, Klaus Iohannis considers that the ministers who have problems should either withdraw or be sacked from the Government. The Liberal Opposition has also called on the Prime Minister to replace all ministers who are involved in criminal investigations. We recall that three members of the Government, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Regional Development Sevil Shhaideh, Minister Delegate for European Funds Rovana Plumb and Minister Delegate for Liaison with Parliament, Viorel Ilie, are being investigated by anticorruption prosecutors.



    MOTION — The Chamber of Deputies in Bucharest on Tuesday debated a simple motion filed by the right-wing opposition against Health Minister Florian Bodog. The National Liberal Party, the Save Romania Union and the People’s Movement Party are calling for his resignation and for quick solutions in the field of healthcare. The opposition is criticizing the vaccine crisis and the ministry’s failure to implement infrastructure projects, in particular as regards emergency hospitals in Cluj, Craiova and Iasi. The vote is scheduled on Wednesday. The opposition also wants Bodog to step down amidst allegations of plagiarism over his PhD thesis, which Bodog has firmly dismissed.



    ROMANIAN ECONOMY- The International Monetary Fund has revised the outlook for the Romanian economy upward, from 4.2% to 5.5%, according to the institution’s “World Economic Outlook”, released on Tuesday. The IMF has also improved the forecast for the growth rate of the Romanian economy in 2018, from 3.4% as was estimated in April, to 4.4%. According to the institutions’ world economic outlook, Romania and Iceland will report the biggest economic growth in Europe, of 5.5%. Also on Tuesday, the National Institute for Statistics upgraded Romania’s economic growth rate from 5.9 to 6.1% for the second quarter of the year, as compared to the same period of last year.



    DEFENSE COOPERATION — Bucharest authorities on Tuesday signed a memorandum of understanding with the US security giant General Dynamics for the manufacturing of armoured vehicles in Romania, the Government has announced. Defence Minister Mihai Fifor recently said that based on the contract with General Dynamics, the Bucharest Mechanical Factory will make 8×8 Piranha transporters for the Romanian Army.



    FINANCE — Finance Minister Ionut Misa is as of Wednesday taking part in the annual meeting of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund. According to a ministry release, Misa will meet with representatives of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, First Vice President Philip Bennett and Vice-President Alain Pilloux. The agenda of talks will focus on Romania’s fiscal and budget strategy in the 2017-2019 period.

  • First Reshuffle of Grindeanu Cabinet

    First Reshuffle of Grindeanu Cabinet

    Less than two months after its installation, the leftist government in Bucharest has seen its first reshuffle, having suffered a major blow to its image after a failed attempt to amend the criminal codes. Two ministers resigned over the move, the business minister Florin Jianu and the justice minister Florin Iordache.



    Besides finding replacements for the two empty posts, PM Sorin Grindeanu also made other changes to his cabinet team, reshuffling the position of economy minister and that for European funds. The four new ministers are Tudorel Toader for the justice ministry, Mihai Tudose for the economy ministry, Rovana Plumb for the ministry for European funds and Alexandru Petrescu, who now occupies the post of business minister.



    They were all sworn in on Thursday before President Klaus Iohannis, who said he was hoping the new arrivals would bring added value to the Grindeanu Cabinet. The new justice minister Tudorel Toader has undoubtedly the most difficult task in replacing Florin Iordache, the author of the now infamous emergency decree no. 13 adopted on the 31st of January that led to the biggest street demonstrations in Romanias post-communist history. An apolitical figure with a lot of experience in the legal field and a good reputation, Toader was praised by the very man believed to be behind the now defunct decree no. 13, the leader of the ruling Social Democratic Party, Liviu Dragnea:



    Liviu Dragnea: “The arguments used by the Prime Minister are the same ones I would have considered: undeniable professional reputation, a deep knowledge of constitutional law, a specialist in law and the fact that he is a member of the Venice Commission. Tudorel Toader has not been requested, nor will he be requested, to join the party.



    As soon as the new ministers were sworn in, Prime Minister Grindeanu outlined their tasks. He asked the economy minister, for example, to find ways to revitalise the defence industry:



    Sorin Grindeanu: “Our defence budget is, as you know, 2%. I would like that most of this sum be spent in Romania so that we can help the national defence industry.



    Sorin Grindeanu wants the business minister to work on the prevention bill, a piece of legislation that would focus on preventing companies from receiving sanctions for violating legal provisions. The new minister for European funds has the main task of attracting this year 5.2 billion euros, the target set by the government.


    (translated by: Cristina Mateescu)

  • February 23, 2017 UPDATE

    February 23, 2017 UPDATE

    RESHUFFLE The four new ministers, proposed by Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu, were sworn in on Wednesday in the presence of Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis in the first government reshuffle after the coming to power of the country’s left-wing government in December last year. They are to take over seats at the Ministries of Justice, Economy, Business Environment, Trade and Entrepreneurship and European Funds. Two nominations were expected initially, for Justice and Business Environment, as the two offices had remained vacant against the background of the political crisis triggered by the Government’s attempt to amend the Penal Codes under an emergency decree and to operate a collective pardon. On Wednesday, the Social Democratic Party decided to operate four changes in the cabinet, all of them validated by the leadership of the party. Tudorel Toader, a former judge with the Constitutional Court, was nominated for the office of Minister of Justice. According to the Prime Minister, his main priorities are the elimination of the Cooperation and Verification Mechanism and transposing the Court’s decision into the penal codes. The proposal for the Ministry of Business Environment and SMEs is Alexandru Petrescu, who had to give up the Economy, where the next minister will be Mihai Tudose. Tudose used to hold the same office in the Ponta Cabinet. Rovana Plumb is the proposal for Minister Delegate for European Funds. Sorin Grindeanu has explained that this field needs a person that has both governmental and political experience, and Rovana Plumb has both.



    ORDINANCE Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis announced he would promulgate on Friday the two laws through which early this week, the Chamber of Deputies repealed infamous emergency ordinance 13 aimed at amending the penal codes and endorsed the one that abrogates the former, ordinance 14. Hundreds of thousands took to the streets of Romania to protest the government’s intention to amend the penal legislation to include the partial decriminalization of the abuse of office. The anti-ordinance and anti-government rallies commenced on January 31st, when ordinance 13 was adopted and continued even after its abrogation. We recall the ordinance attracted a lot of heat from the president, opposition parties, the main legal institutions in Romania and from its foreign partners in the EU and NATO.



    ANTI-CORRUPTION In Romania, the efforts made with regard to the justice system must be supported by a stable legislative and institutional background in order for the system to be effective in combating corruption, said in Bucharest the chief-prosecutor of the National Anticorruption Directorate Laura Codruta Kovesi upon presenting the 2016 activity report of the Directorate. The idea has also been stressed by the head of state Klaus Iohannis, who has said that there are some gaps in the Romanian legislation with regard to the judiciary and real consultations on this matter are a must. Iohannis has said that he will unconditionally support the strengthening of the rule of law, saying that the role of the National Anticorruption Directorate is essential in fighting corruption and observing the law. According to the report, in 2016 the directorate’s activity was more effective. Some 1300 people were indicted, of which 870 got final sentences. The latter include 3 ministers, 6 senators, 11 deputies, 16 magistrates and 20 directors of state-owned companies. More than one quarter of those sent to court in 2016 were found guilty of abuse of office, which caused the state losses of over 260 million Euros. Recovering the losses was an important component and precautionary measures were taken, worth 760 million Euros.


  • Changes in Romania’s government

    Changes in Romania’s government

    The Romanian Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos
    has announced the replacement of four of the 22 members of his cabinet, namely
    the Minister for Education, Adrian Curaj, Communications, Marius Bostan,
    Transport, Dan Costescu and the Minister-Delegate for Relations with Romanians
    Abroad, Dan Stoenescu. The Prime Minister has stated that the four have generally
    done a good job, but that the government team needs some fresh blood. Dacian
    Ciolos:




    The main priority
    for the new ministers in these four areas will be to accelerate the delivery of
    results for the projects that have been started and which, from my point of
    view, have not advanced fast enough. I want people who can bring fresh impetus,
    who can approach things in a different manner and who can make better use of
    the time we have left to fulfill the goals to which this Government has
    committed itself.




    In the field of
    education, the Prime Minister would like to put stronger emphasis on
    pre-university education and the functioning of the national Council for
    Attestation of Academic Titles, Diplomas and Certificates. The new
    Minister-Delegate for Relations with Romanians Abroad will have to accelerate
    the process of informing citizens in the Diaspora about the upcoming
    parliamentary elections and also to reconnect them better with Romania. As
    regards communications, Dacian Ciolos has stated he made the decision to
    replace the minister because he wanted to see more clarity in the way in which
    some IT platforms are coordinated at Government level. Dacian Ciolos:




    In the area of
    transport, I would like to accelerate the execution of the motorway projects,
    the reform of the National Road and Motorway Company, which should have been
    completed for months now, although I know that some progress has been made, and
    also the preparation of new projects.




    The Rector of
    Bucharest University Mircea Dumitru has been proposed for the office of
    Education Minister, while the name set forth for minister of transport is Sorin
    Buse, who is a manager with a lot of experience in the automotive industry.
    Dragos Tudorache will be the interim Communications Minister, while for the
    Department for Relations with Romanians Abroad, the Prime Minister has proposed
    the current ambassador to Canada, Maria Ligor.




    The Deputy Prime
    Minister Vasile Dincu has said that the reshuffle came as no surprise to him,
    but that the announcement was made without prior media preparation. The
    co-president of the National Liberal Party Alina Gorghiu has said that the
    replacement of the four ministers is a good sign, adding that changes are never
    made when things go well.

  • July 6, 2016 UPDATE

    July 6, 2016 UPDATE

    RULING – Romanias Constitutional Court has unanimously endorsed the notification sent by President Klaus Iohannis on the unconstitutional character of a law. According to this law, mayors and local county councillors indicted for corruption deeds, and who got suspended prison sentences, can further be maintained in their public positions. Iohannis challenged this law at the Constitutional Court, on grounds of hindering the fight against corruption. Also on Wednesday, the Court decided to postpone until September 13th issuing a ruling on the bill challenged by almost 100 parliament members. The bill, passed two weeks ago, stipulates that MPs who had hired their relatives at their parliamentary cabinets before August 21, 2013, can no longer be accused of conflict of interests. The MPs who are now challenging this bill say it could create a legal conflict of constitutional nature between Parliament and the High Court of Cassation and Justice, as it introduces a new interpretation of the conflict of interests. Moreover, the signatories to the bill also say that the law applies retroactively, which runs counter to a principle established by the Constitution.



    RESHUFFLE – The new ministers nominated by Romanias technocratic PM, Dacian Ciolos, following the cabinet reshuffle announced on Tuesday, will be sworn in on Thursday, a communiqué issued by the Presidential Administration reads. The ministers who have been replaced are transport minister, Dan Costescu, education minister, Adrian Curaj, the minister delegate for the relation with the Romanian diaspora, Dan Stoenescu, and communications minister, Marius Bostan. The names of their successors have already been made public. This is the most extensive government reshuffle made by PM Dacian Ciolos since he took office, in November 2015.



    VISAS – The Canadian migration minister will have talks with members of the European Commission next week on mutual visa exemption. The meeting is held in the context in which Romania and Bulgaria might vote against the EU-Canada Agreement, in response to the Canadian governments refusal to lift visas for Romanian and Bulgarian citizens. The EU intends to endorse the document in October.



    NATO SUMMIT – Polands capital, Warsaw, is preparing to receive over 2,200 participants in the NATO Summit that starts on Friday. Alongside NATO members, European Union officials and leaders of Georgia, Ukraine and Afghanistan are also expected to attend the summit. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has said the Alliances leaders will be making key decisions for the consolidation of NATOs defence and deterrence capabilities. Also, a Romanian brigade will be turned into a multinational force. Moreover, multinational battalions will be dispatched to the three Baltic states and Poland.



    HUNGARIAN BORDER SECURITY – The Hungarian authorities have stopped over 1,000 people from illegally crossing the border into Hungary as of Tuesday, when the new border security regulations were enforced, on an 8 km wide strip, on the countrys southern frontier. The measures have been criticised by the UNHCR for violating the immigrants rights. Also on Tuesday, Budapest announced that Hungary will organise, on October 2, a referendum on the European plan regarding the refugee distribution quota across the EU.



    THE OSCE – Victor Paul Dobre, a member of the Romanian Parliaments delegation at the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) has been elected vice-president of this organisation, at its 25th annual meeting held in Tbilisi, Georgia, between July 1 and 5. The OSCE addresses a wide range of security-related issues, including arms control, security-building measures, human rights, national minorities, democratisation, counter-terrorism as well as economic and environmental matters. It is made up of 57 participating states that span the globe, encompassing three continents – North America, Europe and Asia – and more than a billion people. Romanias Parliament has been part of the OSCEs Parliamentary Assembly since its establishment, in 1991, with a standing delegation made up of seven MPs.



    DRILLS- Divers from Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania, the US, Turkey and Ukraine are taking part, until Saturday, in a multinational exercise in Romanias territorial waters. This joint exercise, currently at its 6th edition consists in finding, neutralising and destroying underwater-improvised explosives devices and naval mines. We remind you that also these days the town of Targu-Mures, in central Romania, is playing host to a NATO exercise, enjoying the participation of 17 teams from such countries as Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, Germany, Norway, Serbia, Sweden, the US, Switzerland and Turkey. The exercise was organized by the Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordination Centre jointly with Romania, and is a computer simulation of an large-scale disaster situation, resulting in multiple victims and the evacuation of thousands of people.


    (Translated by D. Vijeu and E. Enache)