Radio România Internațional

Tag: resilience

October 16, 2024

PNRR The European Commission has provisionally approved Romania’s third payment request for its National Resilience and Recovery Plan known as PNRR. The Commission is waiting to receive additional information from the government in Bucharest within a month in order to make the whole payment. According to the EC’s assessment, Romania had met 62 out of the 68 requirements related to reforms and investment, which led to the temporary suspension of payment until explanations were provided. If these explanations are considered enough, the Commission is expected to make the entire payment of 2 billion Euros.

UKRAINE Romania can play the role of a logistic hub in Ukraine’s reconstruction – says the president of the Romania-Ukraine Bilateral Chamber of Commerce, Nasty Vladoiu, who has recently attended the Forum on the Reconstruction of Ukraine in Bucharest. In turn, Ana Tinca, state secretary for strategic affairs with Romania’s Foreign Ministry, has reiterated Romania’s commitment to supporting Ukraine and the significant importance attached to Ukraine’s reconstruction. In this context she underlined the special attention paid to cross-border projects and connectivity in the fields of transport and energy, as well as the trilateral cooperation also involving the Republic of Moldova. The official has also mentioned the EU’s major support in the country’s reconstruction, urging the business community to use the instruments and programmes available at EU level.

SUMMIT Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis is in Brussels to participate in the EU-Gulf Cooperation Council Summit and the European Council proceedings due on Thursday and Friday. Subjects high on the agenda are Ukraine, the war in the Middle East, the EU competitiveness, migration, foreign affairs and the Republic of Moldova. The European leaders are also expected to tackle the latest evolutions of the war in Ukraine, as well as ways of helping the Ukrainian people. They will also discuss the alarming situation in the Middle East and ‘the risks of escalating violence in the region’. Talks will also focus on the Republic of Moldova’s EU accession as well as migration-related policies.

FOOTBALL Romania’s national football side clinched a 2-1 win against Lithuania in an away game counting towards the Nations League’s Group C on Tuesday night. This has been Romania’s fourth win after those against Lithuania at home, Cyprus and Kosovo. Romania tops the group with 12 points followed by Kosovo, which outperformed Cyprus 3-0 and has three points less than our side. Romania will be playing Kosovo on 15 November, and taking on Cyprus three days later. The Nations League will have a direct effect over the European preliminaries for World Cup 2026. In another development, Romania’s Under 21 squad has qualified for the European Championship 2025 after a 3-1 home win against Switzerland also on Tuesday. They have thus managed to secure their fourth consecutive presence in a final Under 21 tournament.

(bill)

16 October 2024
March 14, 2024

ELECTIONS The ruling coalition in Romania convenes today to discuss a joint candidate in the election for mayor general of Bucharest. So far the Social Democratic Party and the National Liberal Party have failed to reach an agreement on the topic. The 2 parties will however present a joint list of candidates for the elections for the European Parliament, due on 9 June, concurrently with the country’s local elections. The head of the European Commission’s representative office in Bucharest, Ramona Chiriac, the top nominee on this list, announced she would take unpaid leave to prepare her campaign. A career diplomat, Chiriac has nearly 20-year long experience in European affairs. The election campaign starts on 10 May and ends the day before the elections. Also this year, Romania will hold presidential elections in September and parliamentary elections in December.

TREASURE In a debate on Thursday, MEPs called on Russia to fully return Romania’s national treasure, and urged the European Commission and other relevant EU institutions to support Romania in its efforts. This was the first discussion in the European Parliament concerning the Romanian national treasure illegally appropriated by Russia during WWI. The EU Commissioner for cohesion and reforms, Elisa Ferreira, said the treasure had been sent for safekeeping to Russia, but was never fully returned, either by the Soviet Union or the Russian Federation. The EU is prepared to support the Romanian authorities in fully recovering the treasure, should they request EU assistance, Elisa Ferreira said, but she warned that Russia’s unjustified war against Ukraine entailed the suspension of cooperation mechanisms with Moscow. The EP debate on the treasure will be followed by a vote on a resolution in this respect. During WWI, Romania sent its national treasure for safekeeping to Russia, its only ally in the vicinity, but the Communist regime seized the assets and refused to return them. The National Bank entrusted Moscow with a total of 91.48 tonnes of pure gold.

MEDIA The European Parliament passed the European Media Freedom Act, which is designed to protect journalists and media organisations in the EU from political and economic interference. According to the Radio Romania News and Current Affairs’ correspondent, under the new legislation member states will be obliged to protect journalists from governmental, political, economic and private interference, and all forms of interventions in editorial decisions will be banned. In order to ensure transparency with respect to mass media ownership, all channels, regardless of their size, will have to make public their ownership structure and their use of public funding.

RECOVERY The Romanian PM Marcel Ciolacu Thursday announced that the ministers coordinating reforms would have a meeting next week with Celine Gauer, the European Commission’s director general of the Recovery and Resilience Task Force, to analyse major benchmarks in Romania’s 3rd payment request. He denied that the National Recovery and Resilience Plan has reached a deadlock, and emphasised that Romania’s relation with the European Commission is quite good. Previously, the minister for European investments and projects, Adrian Câciu, also said the 3rd payment request was not frozen. The explanations came after information was leaked regarding the European Commission freezing the 3rd payment request under the NRRP for failure to meet certain benchmarks, which according to Save Romania Union in opposition were related to appointments in the management of state-owned energy corporations and the agency charged with monitoring state-owned companies. Under the NRRP, all these institutions, without exception, must operate in compliance with corporate governance principles. On Thursday the government approved changes to the multi-annual budget for the reforms and investments undertaken in the NRRP.

AID The National Emergency Committee passed a resolution under which Romania is to grant international assistance to Jordan, consisting in medical equipment and supplies necessary for the operation of a field hospital in Gaza. The donated products and equipment come from the medical emergency inventory managed by the Inspectorate General for Emergencies, and were flown to the site by aircraft made available by the defence ministry.

14 March 2024
September 29, 2023 UPDATE

TAXES USR and the Force of the Right parties in
opposition in Romania Friday notified the Constitutional Court with respect to
the set of fiscal measures for which the Government has recently assumed
responsibility. The 2 parties argue that many
provisions in the bill are against the Constitution. Two members of the
National Liberal Party (in the ruling coalition) have also signed the
notification, the USR floor group leader Ionuţ Moşteanu said. According to him,
the Cabinet has initiated a reform which is not implemented consistently and violates
the principle of judicial security. The move by USR was criticised by another
Opposition party, AUR, which is collecting signatures in Parliament to table a
no-confidence motion. The finance minister, Marcel Boloş, claims however that
the set of fiscal measures endorsed by the government is needed for Romania’s
modernisation process, and a failure to solve the budget deficit issue would
jeopardise the payment of EUR 75 billion in EU funding for Romania’s
development projects.

FUNDING Romania has received from the European Commission EUR 2.7
bln in response to the second disbursement application under the National
Recovery and Resilience Plan, submitted in December. The finance minister
Marcel Boloş says Romania is among the first countries in the Union to complete
the steps required for obtaining a second instalment of the funds. In a social
media post, he said Romania has so far received combined payments of nearly EUR
10 bln in grants and loans, out of the EUR 29 bln earmarked for the country
under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan.

MOTORWAY The Development Ministry in Bucharest has approved a EUR 6
bln investment for the mountain segment of the A8 Motorway, between Miercurea
Nirajului (centre) and Leghin (north-east). The approx. 160-km segment
includes 47 tunnels and over 250 overpasses. The project is to be approved in a
Cabinet meeting, and then a bid would be initiated for the procurement of
design and construction works. The project is to be finalised in 54 months. The
Union Motorway (Târgu Mureş-Iaşi-Ungheni) will be over 300 km long, but so far contracts
have only been signed for the 30 km between Leghin and Târgu Neamţ.

EXHIBITION Nearly 100 works are included in the most
important exhibition in the past 50 years in Romania devoted to the great
sculptor Constantin Brâncuși. The exhibition opens on Saturday in western
Romania as part of the Timişoara – European Capital of Culture programme.
Sculptures, photos, archive documents and video materials will be on display at
the National Art Museum in the city until the end of January. The works, whose
insured value is half a billion euros, come from public and private collections
in Romania and abroad, including famous galleries such as the Pompidou centre in
Paris and Tate in London.

DEFENCE Romania will procure all the military equipment needed to
enhance the security at the Black Sea, the Romanian defence minister Angel
Tîlvăr said during a visit at a military equipment producer in Timişoara. He
emphasised that Romania is a safe country and not involved in any conflict with
anyone, but that incidents such as the Russian drone falling on Romanian
territory are still possible. We are doing our best and have made public the
additional measures we took after drone pieces were found in Romania, he added.
He also mentioned the Army is still interested in attracting young members,
especially since a large number of military staff have retired recently. (AMP)

29 September 2023
June 27, 2023 – UPDATE

RECOVERY The European Commission Tuesday endorsed a positive preliminary
assessment of the second payment request submitted by Romania under the
National Recovery and Resilience Facility, and found 49 out of the 51 targets
and milestones to be completed. Two
milestones, concerning investments in the energy sector, are deemed as not satisfactorily
fulfilled, and therefore the Commission activated a ‘payment suspension’
procedure. The EC acknowledged the first steps already taken by Romania to
fulfil these outstanding milestones, but emphasised that important work remains
to be done. Romania is to submit its observations within one month, and has an
additional 6 months to fulfil the outstanding milestones. If and when they have
been completed, the Commission will lift the payment suspension. In this
context, the EC chief Ursula von der Leyen stated that Romania has progressed
well in the implementation of its recovery and resilience plan, for instance
carrying out reforms on road safety, renewable energy and public sector cloud
services. PM Marcel Ciolacu says the
two delayed milestones will be recovered quickly, so that the country may
receive all the funds earmarked for them. The total amount in the second
payment request is EUR 2.8 billion, but Romania will receive EUR 53 million
less. The USR leader in opposition, Cătălin Drulă, says the money will only
arrive in September and the 3rd and 4th payments, also
scheduled for this year, stand no chances of being received

PROTEST About 700 employees with the police and penitentiary systems,
as well as court clerks protested in front of the Parliament building on
Tuesday, against the revision of the military and service pension system.
Protesters also asked for the elimination of all wage inequities, ceilings and
postponements imposed by the Government since 2010. According to protesters,
the increase in the retirement age from 60 to 65 is unjustified and will turn
Romania into the country with the most unfavourable retirement terms in the
NATO bloc. On Monday, the Romanian MPs passed a bill on the reform of all
special pensions received by some professional categories in Romania. The
changes concern, among other things, the increase in the retirement age for
some beneficiaries and the taxation of amounts that exceed the net average
salary. On the same day, Parliament eliminated the special pensions of senators
and deputies.

BACCALAUREATE Romanian high school graduates Tuesday sat the
compulsory test in their respective majors as part of the Baccalaureate exam. The
last test of the exam for most students is scheduled for Wednesday, with only
ethnic minority students left to sit a mother tongue test on Thursday. During
the examinations all classrooms are subject to audio and video surveillance,
and access with electronic devices or any other materials may lead to expulsion.
The grades will be announced on 3 July, and they may be appealed on the same
day, with the final results to be announced on 7 July.

FARMERS Romania will receive EUR 30 million from the European
Commission in aid for farmers affected by the import of cheap grain from
Ukraine. The support package, the second approved by Brussels after the one in
March, is worth a total EUR 100 million and is granted to five border countries
– Romania, Poland, Bulgaria, Hungary and Slovakia. Poland, with almost EUR 40
million and Romania with EUR 30 million are the biggest beneficiaries of this
aid. The deadline for payments to farmers is 30 September. After the Ukrainian
Black Sea ports were blocked following the Russian invasion, the Romanian port
of Constanţa has become the most important alternative shipping route. (AMP)

27 June 2023
February 21, 2023 UPDATE

UKRAINE The US
president Joe Biden Tuesday praised the Ukrainians’ resilience in the face of
the Russian invasion launched nearly a year ago. Speaking at a rally in Warsaw,
he emphasized that the US support for Ukraine remained unwavering and that the
free world condemned Russia’s aggression. Biden added that he also wanted the
people of the Republic of Moldova to be truly free, and called on participants
to applaud Moldova’s president Maia Sandu, attending the assembly. Previously,
in Moscow, president Vladimir Putin announced Russia would suspend its
participation in the New START treaty with the US on the reduction of strategic
nuclear weapons. The statement was made at the end of his state-of-the-nation address,
ahead of the first anniversary of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on 24th February,
and after the US president Joe Biden made a surprise visit to Kyiv. On Wednesday,
Biden is due to meet the leaders of Bucharest Nine, a group of NATO countries
from central and eastern Europe formed after Russia’s annexation of Crimea at
the proposal of the presidents of Romania and Poland, Klaus Iohannis and Andrej
Duda, respectively. The NATO secretary general, Jens Stoltenberg, said that
with Russia’s decision on the latest START Treaty full arms control
architecture has been dismantled. Speaking at a press conference in Brussels
with the participation of Dmytro Kuleba, Ukraine’s minister of foreign affairs,
and Josep Borrell, the EU high representative for foreign affairs, Stoltenberg added
that Moscow was the aggressor in Ukraine, after Vladimir Putin had claimed that
the West was trying to destroy Russia.

PENSIONS In Bucharest, USR and the Force of the Right parties in opposition
Tuesday tabled a simple motion against the labour minister Marius Budăi, whom
they accuse of incompetence and carelessness. They argue that Budăi is
protecting special pensions (which are not based on contributions to pension
funds) thus jeopardising the EU funding Romania should receive under the
National Recovery and Resilience Plan. Meanwhile, the Senate has once again
postponed the bill reforming special pensions, for 2 weeks, until relevant ministries
have submitted estimates of its impact on the budget and stated whether the
bill complies with Resilience Plan benchmarks. The World Bank is also expected
to state its view on the matter.

TURKEY Rescuers
in Turkey are carrying out new searches for people trapped under the rubble as
a new quake hit the south-east of the country on Monday night, in the same
region as the devastating earthquakes that took place two weeks ago. According
to official reports, six persons were killed and 200 wounded in the latest
tremor. Turkey’s president Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who is running for a new term
in May if elections are held on schedule, says his country would start building
tens of thousands of new homes next month, a move estimated to cost at least 25
billion dollars. Erdogan’s rapid reconstruction plans worry architects and
engineers, who are concerned that the lack of urban planning and careful
assessment of building safety may lead to a new disaster.

CULTURE Two
books about Constantin Brâncuşi were launched in Timişoara, which this year is
holding the title of European Capital of Culture. The books, which recently
appeared in France, are written by Doina Lemny, art historian and researcher at
the National Museum of Modern Art and the Pompidou Centre in Paris. The launch
previews an extensive exhibition dedicated to the great Romanian sculptor next
autumn at Timişoara’s Museum of Art. According to the city’s mayor Dominic
Fritz, around 60,000 people attended the over 130 different events held in
Timişoara this weekend during the official opening of the European Capital of
Culture programme. The city will be playing host to around 1,000 different
cultural events all year long. (AMP, CM)

21 February 2023
January 24, 2023 UPDATE

UNION Romanians on Tuesday celebrated the union of the historical provinces
of Moldavia and Wallachia, a political event, which took place 164 years ago,
in 1859, under the leadership of ruler Alexandru Ioan Cuza. The move was the
first step in the process of creating the Romanian modern state, process
completed back in 1918. Military and religious services were staged by the
Ministry of National Defence jointly with central and local authorities at the
monuments devoted to the union of the Romanian principalities. Wreath laying
ceremonies were held at the monument of the Unknown Soldier. Present at the
event, Romanian president Klaus Iohannis said that the successes achieved back
in 1859 are a lesson of responsibility for all those who are building the
European, modern and democratic Romania. He reiterated the appeal to use all
the instruments available to complete all the reforms Romania needs and to
eradicate the malfunctions, which are still affecting this process. Thousands
of people took to the streets of Iasi, in eastern Romania, to participate in a
series of events on this occasion. The country’s Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca
and the president of the Chamber of Deputies Marcel Ciolacu also participated
in these events. In his public address on this special occasion, Prime Minister
Ciuca said the roots of the European Romania can be found in the union
completed 164 years ago – an authentic example of the unity of the Romanians,
which paved the way for the emancipation and modernization of the state. In his
opinion, the responsibility of the political class and the state institutions
is to honour this act of uniting the Romanian nation. Religious services were
held in Orthodox churches around the country on this occasion.

UKRAINE Several high officials in Ukraine on Tuesday announced their
resignations amid high-level corruption allegations during the war with Russia,
France Press reports. Deputy Defence Minister, Viacheslav Shapovalov, and the
deputy head of Ukraine’s presidential office, Kyrylo Tymoshenko are among the
high officials to have stepped down. Deputy prosecutor General Oleksiy
Symonenko also resigned amid allegations about a holiday he spent with his
family in Spain after Ukraine’s National Security and Defence Council had banned
state officials from leaving the country during martial law. Amid all these
allegations, which threaten to dampen the West’s enthusiasm to help the
government in Kyiv, president Zelensky has pledged to launch a staff shake-up
in the central and local administrations including at top level. Ukraine’s
endemic corruption has been overlooked since the beginning of the Russian
invasion, but fighting the scourge is one of the key conditions for the country
to join the European Union.

EU Security,
prosperity, the democratic values and the rule of law are the priorities of the
Swedish presidency of the European Union presented by the country’s Foreign
Minister Tobias Billstrom before the European Parliament on Tuesday. Billstrom
has condemned the unprovoked, brutal and unjustified aggression of Russia
against Ukraine and has mentioned the EU’s Swedish presidency will have as one
of the objectives to carry on the political, military, economic and
humanitarian support for Kyiv in spite of the Moscow’s attempts to cause
division among the Europeans. Billstrom believes that sanctions are an
extremely effective instrument through which the bloc can help Ukraine win the
war. The programme of the EU’s Swedish presidency includes roughly two thousand
formal meetings in Brussels and Luxembourg as well as 150 informal meetings
hosted by Sweden.

G7+ Romania’s Foreign
Minister Bogdan Aurescu on Tuesday participated in the G7+ videoconference
where he stood for an increased assistance for Ukraine in the context of the
present winter challenges. Aurescu said that Romania would continue to support
Ukraine jointly with the partners sharing the same visions and objectives. The
G7+ conference was co-chaired by the US secretary of state Antony Blinken and
the Foreign Minister of Japan Hayashi Yoshimasa. High on the agenda was the
situation of Ukraine’s energy infrastructure, which suffered massive and
repeated attacks from the Russian Federation as well as the stage and prospects
of the support granted to Ukraine by the international community to handle the
results of these attacks and increase its resilience at society level.
According to Foreign Ministry sources, the head of the Romanian diplomacy mentioned
the success of this format launched in Bucharest in November 2022 on the
sidelines of the NATO Foreign Ministers meeting. Aurescu says that the repeated
large-scale attacks against the Ukrainian civilian infrastructure is a blatant
violation of the international humanitarian law and their aim is to break the
resilience of the Ukrainian society, something the international democratic
community cannot allow to happen.

HOLIDAY Students are going back to school on Wednesday after the mini-holiday
celebrating the union of the Romanian principalities. State employees also had
a four-day holiday, which most of them decided to spend on the mountain resorts
of the Prahova Valley. Brasov and Sibiu in central Romania as well as Oradea in
the north-west were the cities, which reported most of the reservations.

(bill)

24 January 2023
December 16, 2022

SCHENGEN
The losses incurred by Romania for the rejection of its Schengen accession bid
are over EUR 25 bln, says the Romanian interior minister Lucian Bode. For 11 years
we have been securing Schengen’s border, investing in human resources,
capabilities and modern technologies. The losses incurred by Romania during all
this time, since it has fulfilled the criteria but has not benefited from the
related rights, are immeasurable, Mr. Bode said at a meeting of EU gendarme
chiefs. The topic of Romania’s Schengen accession and of the negative vote
given by Austria in the Justice and Home Affairs Council meeting last week was
also raised by president Klaus Iohannis at a meeting of EU leaders in Brussels.
Senior European officials conveyed a message of support for Romania’s and
Bulgaria’s Schengen accession. The EC president Ursula von der Leyen and the
Council president Charles Michel said further discussions would be held on this
topic and progress was expected in the following months.

FUNDING The
Romanian ministry for EU funding and investments has submitted to the EC the
second payment request, amounting to EUR 3.228 bln, under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. The 3rd payment request, amounting to EUR 3.1 bln, is to be submitted
to the Commission next spring. Romania benefits from over EUR 29 bln for the
implementation of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, including grants
of up to EUR 14.24 bln and loans of nearly EUR 15 bln. The country has already
cashed in 2 pre-financing instalments totaling EUR 3.79 bln.

EU The president of
the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen will attend in Bucharest on
Saturday the signing of an agreement between the governments of Azerbaijan,
Georgia, Romania and Hungary concerning the Strategic Partnership in the
development and transport of green energy. The agreement will be signed by the
president of the Republic of Azerbaijan, Ilham Aliyev, and the PM of Georgia
Irakli Garibashvili, the PM of Romania Nicolae Ciucă, and the PM of Hungary
Viktor Orban. According to the Romanian Presidency, the document is based on
the interests of the 4 states concerning a strengthened national and regional
energy security. The agreement will provide a financial and technical framework
for the construction of an underwater renewable energy transport cable between
Romania and Azerbaijan, via Georgia and the Black Sea, and further on for the
transport of this energy to Hungary and the rest of Europe.

INFLATION The EU
annual inflation rate dropped from 11.5% in October to 11.1% in November, but in
8 member countries the rate rose from one month to the other, including in
Romania, where it went from 13.5% to 14.6%, Eurostat announced on Friday. In November,
the EU member states with the highest inflation rates were Hungary, Latvia, Estonia
and Lithuania. At the opposite pole, the lowest inflation rates were reported
in Spain, France and Malta.

PROTEST Hundreds
of employees in the Romanian public education system are today picketing
prefect offices in several counties, primarily demanding the full
implementation of a law concerning their incomes. Education unions say the net
salaries for this category are up to EUR 440 and warn that 2023 will bring a
new series of union actions unless the government solves the problems in this
sector. The trade unions also criticise the government’s failure to pay for
overtime and travel expenses and to adjust revenues to the inflation rate.

TIMISOARA Romania
commemorates today 33 years since the start of the anti-communist uprising in Timişoara,
western Romania. The anniversary is marked by a traditional solemn meeting of
the Local Council. The participants, including members of revolutionary
associations, discuss the events of December ’89 and observe a moment of
silence to honour those who died during those days. Exhibitions, film
screenings, round tables, a concert entitled Folk for the Revolution as well
marches are also organised on this occasion. 33 years ago, in Timişoara, a
solidarity rally for the Reformed pastor Laszlo Tokes grew into an uprising
that spread across the country and led to the fall of the communist regime.

RESCUERS Romanian
mountain rescuers were awarded in Paris at the International Rescuers Congress,
attended by relevant institutions, associations and research institutes from
over 60 countries in the world. Salvamont Romania was acknowledged as one of
the best drone-assisted search and rescue services, and the distinction was
received for the Data Analysis Centre in Târgu Jiu. The centre uses special software
and drones for victim identification. (AMP)

16 December 2022
December 12, 2022 UPDATE

TALKS The vote in the JHA
Council is very problematic for all of us in Romania. I was disappointed and
upset following this vote, the president of Romania Klaus Iohannis said on
Monday, after receiving the president of the Swiss
Confederation Ignazio Cassis in Bucharest. The Romanian president added that he
would most certainly raise the issue of Romania’s denied Schengen bid at the
meeting of the European Council due on December 15. Romania should be a part of
Schengen, the Swiss president said in his turn. The 2
officials discussed bilateral relations and economic cooperation, with an emphasis
on boosting investments and identifying new areas of cooperation, and exchanged
views on the latest international developments, including the war in Ukraine
and its implications for the energy market and global security.

FUNDING Romania’s PM Nicolae Ciucă Monday requested all ministries
and coordinating institutions to give maximum priority to completing the 51 benchmarks
and targets in the National Recovery and Resilience Plan related to the second
payment request, amounting to EUR 2.8 bln, which Romania is scheduled to submit
to the European Commission this month. This amount adds to the EUR 3.7 bln pre-financing
amount and to a first EUR 2.6 bln instalment already cashed in by Romania. We
cannot afford to deviate from our commitments, because a lot of elements
related to reform processes, investments and even economic stability depend on
us accessing this money, the PM said at a meeting of the inter-ministry
Committee Coordinating the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. The Committee
also reviewed the progress with respect to the 55 targets and benchmarks due
for the 3rd and 4th quarters of this year, related to the
3rd payment request that Romania is scheduled to submit to the EC
this spring.

BUDGET In Bucharest, Parliament’s specialist committees Monday approved
the draft budgets of several ministries. The education, transport, development
and defence ministries will have higher budgets next year, while the energy,
justice and healthcare ministries will receive less money in 2023. The ruling
coalition said the budget bill is based on record high investments and accounts
for 7.2% of GDP. It takes into account an economic growth rate of 2.8% of GDP,
an annual inflation rate of 8%, a growing number of people in employment and a
lower unemployment rate of 2.7%. The opposition has criticised the budget bill.
Both the power and the opposition have submitted amendments. The final vote is
due on Thursday.

MOTION Save Romania Union in
opposition Monday tabled a simple motion against the interior minister Lucian
Bode, whom they see as responsible for Romania’s failure to join the Schengen free-movement
area. According to the party, Bode shares this responsibility with the
president Klaus Iohannis, with the parliamentary majority and the diplomacy in Bucharest.
USR also invited the foreign minister Bogdan Aurescu to give Parliament
explanations on this topic. Several EU member states voiced their
disappointment with the denial of Romania’s and Bulgaria’s Schengen accession bids.
Moreover, the EU commissioner for home affairs, Ylva Johansson, said this would
be a priority of her term in office.

EU European democracy is under attack, the head of the European
Parliament Roberta Metsola said on Monday, voicing her outrage and sadness following
allegations of corruption in the European Parliament in relation to Qatar. In
turn, the president of the European Commission, Ursula Von der Leyen, Monday
called for EU institutions to be governed by the highest standards of
independence and integrity. The EU high representative for foreign affairs Josep
Borrell described the EP corruption allegations as being of the utmost
concern. Eva Kaili, a vice-president of the European parliament from Greece, and
3 other individuals were detained and charged in Belgium in an international corruption
investigation related to Qatar. The 4 were charged with participation in a criminal
organisation, money laundering and corruption.

FOREIGN AFFAIRS The Romanian diplomacy chief Bogdan Aurescu took part on Monday in Brussels in an informal meeting concerning the future of the Eastern
Partnership, organised at the initiative of Minister Aurescu and his counterparts
from Czechia, Sweden and Poland, and in a meeting of the Eastern Partnership
foreign ministers. In
his addresses, Bogdan Aurescu pleaded for revitalising the Eastern Partnership
and for adapting it to the new regional context, and reiterated Romania’s firm
and continuing support for it. He argued that the Eastern Partnership can make
a significant contribution to strengthening the stability, security and
prosperity in the Eastern Neighbourhood, by consolidating regional cooperation,
the security and resilience of partners and through an adequate joint response to
the challenges facing the region. Mr. Aurescu also emphasised that in the new
context generated by Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, a more robust
and more efficient security dimension of the Eastern Partnership is necessary.

MEETING The Romanian justice minister, Cătălin
Predoiu, had a meeting on Monday in Luxembourg with the head of the European
Public Prosecutor’s Office (EPPO), Laura Codruţa Kovesi. According to the
Romanian justice ministry, the 2 officials discussed the protection of the EU’s
financial interests, the EPPO human resources issue and the broadening of the
Office’s powers to include the prosecution of breaches of EU sanctions. I am
confidence that an in-depth dialogue with the EPPO may lead to ideas and
solutions to make the cooperation between national and EPPO prosecutors more
efficient. After all, they all fight crime, which affects both the interests of
the EU and the national interests of member states, Catalin Predoiu said. (AMP)

12 December 2022
EU money for Romania’s infrastructure

Romania is set to receive the first payments under the
Recovery and Resilience Facility, intended for the country’s economic recovery. The European Commission has authorized
the first disbursements in the grant and the loan components of the plan. The
decision means EUR 2.6 bln coming Romania’s way.

Bucharest had applied for
these first payments in May, after meeting the 21 targets and milestones
related to the 4th quarter of 2021. In September, the European
Commission’s assessment of these targets was endorsed and forwarded to the
Economic and Financial Committee, which also approved it.

At the time, the
president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, said the positive
assessment had been prompted by good and quick progress in implementing the
first set of reforms and investments under the Plan.

This is a moment that
confirms the government’s consolidated effort, which translated into the
meeting of the targets and milestones undertaken by Romania for the last
quarter of 2021 and into reforms of major importance for our country,ˮ the
minister for European projects and investments, Marcel Boloş, said.
Realistically speaking, it is only the beginning of a long road ahead of us,
but one which, if key aspects in the Plan are completed, will result in
boosting the economy and in generating a solid multiplier effect for
investments in motorways, railway infrastructure, schools, hospital
infrastructure and everything related to the strengthening of the Romanian
economy,ˮ Marcel Boloş added.

The next payment
application will amount to a total EUR 3.2 bln, for which over 50 targets will
have to be met, related to the first half of this year.

Under the Recovery and
Resilience Facility, Romania can benefit from nearly EUR 30 bln. For the
implementation of its national plan, Bucharest has already cashed in 2
pre-financing instalments totalling around EUR 3.8 bln.

In related news, the
minister for European projects and investments stated last week that he hoped
the European Commission would endorse all the 8 regional operational programmes
by November, which would be a turning point in that it would be for the first time that local
authorities will make independent decisions on how to spend these EU funds. Marcel Boloș pointed out that half
of the 8 programmes for the 2021-2027 financial cycle have been approved, and
that they amount to a combined EUR 11 bln. The EU money for the regional
programmes may be used up until 2030. (AMP)

24 October 2022
October 23, 2022

MILITARY The
first shipment of French military equipment to join the NATO battle group deployed
to Cincu, in central Romania, reaches the country on Sunday, the defence
ministry announced. A second convoy, comprising a Leclerc main battle tank
company, is set to arrive in November. The NATO Battle Group Forward Presence
in Romania (BGFP) was created in May by transforming the Allied multinational
elements of the NATO Response Force deployed to our country. Upon France’s
proposal to take over the framework-nation role, the French battalion deployed
to Romania, considered the Spearhead of the Very High Readiness Joint Task
Force (VJTF), built up the BGFP on our national territory by integrating, on
rotational basis, Belgian and Dutch troops. BGFP contributes to the increase of
the Romanian military cooperation with France and, implicitly, to the consolidation
of the Euro-Atlantic space security on the Eastern Flank. Cooperation with the
strategic partners and the deployment of relevant combat structures on national
territory contribute to the increase of defence and deterrence capacity in the
context of the Ukraine war and the Black Sea region crisis, the defence
ministry explains.

BORDER Romania’s
border police announced that over 97,000 people entered Romania on Saturday, of
whom more than 9,500 were Ukrainian nationals, up 15.6% since the previous day.
According to current data, over 2.6 million Ukrainian citizens have entered
Romania since February 10, and nearly 4,400 of them have applied for asylum
here.

NRRP Romania is
set to receive EUR 2.6 bln in the coming days under the National Recovery and
Resilience Plan, to be channelled into the country’s economic recovery. The
funds are transferred after the European Commission authorised the payment of
the first instalments of the non-reimbursable aid and loan components. Romania submitted
the first payment request in May, after meeting the targets and benchmarks for
the 4th quarter of 2021. In September, the European Commission’s assessment of
these targets was approved and submitted to the Economic and Financial
Committee, which also approved it. The Romanian minister for investment and
European projects Marcel Boloş believes this is just the beginning of a long
road, which, if successfully completed, will translate into investments in
motorways, railways, schools and hospitals. The next payment request will
amount to EUR 3.2 bln, for which over 50 targets will have to be met, related
to the first half of this year. Romania may access a total of nearly EUR 30 bln
under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan, of which it has already
received 2 pre-financing instalments amounting to a rough EUR 3.8 bln.

COAL Romania has
increased its coal output to mitigate the energy crunch. The amounts extracted
in the first 8 months of the year went up 1.7% and imports rose by 13.5%, the
National Statistics Institute reports. The National Strategy and Forecast
Commission estimates for this year a coal output 10% higher than in 2021 and a
2.8% rise in imports. For 2023, the Commission forecasts an 8% increase in
output.

CHINA The Chinese
president Xi Jinping was re-elected on Sunday as leader of the ruling Communist
Party, thus becoming China’s strongest leader since Mao Zedong, the founder of
the Chinese communist regime, international news agencies report. Xi Jinping was
appointed for a 3rd five-year term in office by a largely reshuffled Central
Committee, and is very likely to be re-elected president as well in March. ‘China cannot develop without the world, and the world also
needs China,’ he said, and praised what he called the two miracles achieved
by his country-rapid economic development and long-term social stability. Xi
Jinping appointed many of his close allies in the Standing Committee, a 7-member
group in power in China. The all-powerful Politburo includes no women among its
members for the first time in 25 years.

HANDBALL The
Romanian women’s handball champions, Rapid Bucharest, play at home today
against Storhamar, of Norway, in a Champions’ League Group B match. Rapid is
3rd in the ranking, after the Hungarian side Gyor and the French side Metz. On Saturday, vice-champions CSM Bucharest
lost their first game in the group, away from home, to defending champions
Vipers Kristiansand of Norway, 35-29. CSM ranks 3rd in Group A, after the
German side Bietigheim and Kristiansand. (AMP)

23 October 2022
European money for recovery and resilience

Romanias prime minister Nicolae Ciucă said the government was on schedule for Romania to be able to benefit from 10 billion euros of its National Recovery and Resilience Plan this year. Ciucă chaired on Monday a meeting of the committee set up to monitor the plan, the first such meeting since Romania submitted its first payment request to the European Commission on 31st May. He said making use of the 30 billion euros worth of recovery and resilience funds is a coordinated and coherent effort, with well-established milestones, deadlines and tasks for each domain, adding that Romania has managed to put into operation this funding mechanism in a short and difficult period.

The meeting also focused on the social measures and procedures associated with the submission to the European Commission of a payment request for some 3 billion euros, of which 2 billion of non-reimbursable funds and the rest in the form of a loan. According to the prime minister, the 3.7 billion euros already received as pre-financing clearly shows that Romania is on schedule to meet its goals. He said the next payment request from Romania will be submitted in the third quarter of the year, amounting to some 3.2 billion euros, of which 2 billion in non-reimbursable funds.

The minister for European projects and investments Marcel Boloş also said Romania is preparing to submit its second payment request in October. He said the European Commission may ask for clarifications on the goals already fulfilled by Bucharest. If additional information is requested, it will be provided by each ministry involved via the ministry for European projects, said Boloş:

“By the time the payment is made for the reimbursement request, the European Commission is entitled to request clarifications to obtain additional information. The relevant ministries will stay in touch with us as national representative to provide, if need be, the possible additional information the European Commission may request.”

The total of 30 billion euros Romania is to receive from the European Union by 2026 in the form of grants and loans, will be channelled, according to the Romanian authorities, to investments and reforms, the green transition and the digital transition and to consolidate the countrys economic and social resilience, as well as the cohesion of the single market. (CM)

7 June 2022
May 23, 2022 UPDATE

ECONOMY Seven countries, including Romania, continue to
experience imbalances, the European Commission announced on Monday, having
assessed the existence of macroeconomic imbalances for the 12 Member States
selected for in-depth reviews in the 2022 Alert Mechanism Report. The
Commission points out that vulnerabilities in Romania’s economy relate to
external accounts, linked to large fiscal deficits, and to competitiveness
issues that are re-emerging. Large fiscal deficits pre-date the COVID-19 crisis
and have driven up the current account deficit, which poses risks to external
debt sustainability. Government debt increased significantly, although from
moderate levels, sovereign borrowing costs kept growing, while bureaucracy and
a volatile legislative framework will be a burden for investments, the
Commission warns.

RECOVERY The first payment request under the National Recovery and
Resilience Plan, amounting to EUR 3 bln, will be submitted to the European
Commission, PM Nicolae Ciucă announced on Monday. The money will finance
projects in all the sections of the Plan and will impact several strategic
sectors for Romania. PM Nicolae Ciuca appreciated the efforts of the
institutions involved in the management of the RRP and asked for a steady pace
in the efficient and high-quality implementation of the reforms and investment
projects. This is an effort that must be carried on and extended in order for
Romania to benefit from the EUR 30 bln available under the RRP for
modernisation and development projects, Ciucă said.

UKRAINE The number of people forced to flee conflict, violence, human
rights violations and persecutions has exceeded 100 million for the first time,
as a result of the war in Ukraine and other deadly conflicts, shows a statement
from the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The figure is staggering,
worrying and should have never been reached, said UN High Commissioner for
Refugees Filippo Grandi. By the end of 2021, the number of displaced people had
reached 90 million worldwide, due to new waves of violence or protracted
conflicts in countries such as Ethiopia, Burkina Faso, Myanmar, Nigeria,
Afghanistan and the Democratic Republic of Congo. On February 24, the Russian
President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of neighbouring Ukraine, throwing
further millions of people into the streets to flee fighting and reach less
exposed regions or other countries. Europe has not seen such a rapid inflow of
refugees since the end of World War II, UNHCR points out. Nearly 6.5 million
Ukrainians have left the country, mostly women and children, and the UN
estimates that their number could exceed 8 million by the end of the year.

CANNES The Romanian filmmaker Cristian Mungiu, competing at the Cannes Film
Festival, hopes that his film ‘R.M.N.’, in which a village in Transylvania is
like an explosive laboratory of populism, will open the eyes of Europeans to
this evil that has been gnawing at them, AFP reports. Mungiu is in the race for
a second Palme d’Or Prize, 15 years after his ‘4 months, 3 weeks and 2 days’.
The film title, ‘R.M.N.’, refers to the medical term MRI – magnetic resonance
imaging: Mungiu scans the underbelly of populism, an evil that has metastasized
in a still traditional village, on the borders of Europe, AFP reports. ‘I hope
that the public do not easily shy away from their responsibilities, do not
think that this is happening in a remote, wild land. I’m afraid that’s not the
case,’ said director Mungiu. The film takes place a few days before Christmas,
in a village in Transylvania, where the Roma population disappeared, driven
away by the inhabitants and the force of prejudice, and where the new ‘cursed
people of the Earth’ appeared: Sri Lankan workers, brought to work at the local
bakery after the Romanians went to work in the west. (AMP)

23 May 2022
April 27, 2022 UPDATE

UKRAINE Romania condemns in the strongest terms Russia’s blatant violation
of the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine and of its obligations
under international law, the PM of Romania Nicolae Ciucă said after Tuesday’s
meeting in Kyiv with his Ukrainian counterpart Denys Shmyhal. Mr. Ciucă announced
on Wednesday that Romania is considering opening new checkpoints on the Ukrainian
border. He emphasised the importance of the opening of the Isaccea-Orlivka
checkpoint in the south-east in 2020, and of deregulating freight transport for
Ukrainian operators on April 5. The number of Ukrainian nationals to enter
Romania was 50% higher on Tuesday than on the previous day, the Border Police
announced on Wednesday.

CONSTITUTIONAL COURT The
legal committees in the Senate and Chamber of Deputies Wednesday passed a
favourable opinion on all candidacies for judge posts with the Constitutional
Court of Romania. Parliament is due to vote on the candidacies next week. This
June, the terms in office of 3 judges come to an end: Valer Dorneanu, nominated
by the Chamber of Deputies, Mona Pivniceru, nominated by the Senate, and Daniel
Morar, nominated by the Presidency. The Constitutional Court comprises 9 judges
appointed for non-renewable 9-year terms in office, with one-third of the
members replaced every 3 years.

GOVERNMENT The
finance minister Adrian Câciu stated at the Government Hour debates that the
measures included in the Support for Romania package pave the way for
preserving the country’s economic growth trend. Invited to the talks by USR
party in opposition, Mr. Câciu emphasized that in order to have a high economic
growth rate this year, Romania must primarily encourage the agriculture and
constructions sectors. Adrian Câciu also mentioned that Romania, which relies on imports in many sectors, needs to
increase its domestic output and invest in processing.

NATURAL GAS Russia’s decision to discontinue natural gas supplies to Poland and
Bulgaria is an aggressive and unacceptable move, seen by the EU as a form of
blackmail, said the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen. We
will make sure that Gazprom’s decision has the smallest possible impact on
European consumers, she told a press conference on Wednesday. The
European Commission chief advised European energy providers not to give in to
Russia’s request to have natural gas supplies paid for in rubles, and
emphasised that this would most likely be a violation of the EU sanctions
against Russia. After they refused to pay for natural gas in the Russian
currency, Poland and Bulgaria are the first EU member states targeted by a
suspension of Russian gas supplies. In this context, Greece announced it would
assist Bulgaria, while Poland announced current gas supplies cover the
country’s domestic demand.

RECOVERY
Romania has fulfilled all the goals set out in the National Recovery and
Resilience Plan approved by the European Commission, the economy minister
Florin Spătaru said in Bucharest. He emphasised that certain benchmarks related
to the reforms undertaken as part of the plan will have to be revised in the
forthcoming period, and along with the investment element they will contribute
to a major progress of the Romanian economy, which has the potential of growing
up to four-fold by 2030, provided that the principles in the Recovery Plan are
observed and funding is used wisely. According to the economy minister, the
opportunities offered by the Recovery Plan are not only the money, but also the
economic and administrative reform principles, which will lead to reshaping
Romania’s economy in line with the principles of digitisation and green economy.

TENNIS Three Romanian athletes play in the WTA Madrid tournament’s main
draw. Romania’s Irina Begu (62 WTA) Wednesday qualified into the tournament
after defeating Kamila Rakhimova (96 WTA) of Russia, 6-1, 6-0. In the first
round, Simona Halep will play against Shuai Zhang of China, and Sorana Cîrstea
against Nuria Parrizas Diaz of Spain. WTA Madrid Open takes place between April
28 and May 7. Simona Halep won the 2016 and 2017 tournaments. (AMP)

27 April 2022
La semaine du 29.11 au 04.12

Les Roumains ont marqué la Fête nationale

Les Roumains vivant au pays, dans la diaspora et dans les communautés historiques autour des frontières actuelles ont célébré, mercredi, la Fête nationale et les 103 ans depuis la création de l’Etat national unitaire. Le 1er Décembre 1918, la grande assemblée nationale organisée à Alba Iulia décida de l’union des provinces de Transylvanie (centre), du Banat, du Maramureş et de la Crişana habitées par des Roumains avec le Royaume de Roumanie. Dans un message adressé aux Roumains à l’occasion de la Fête nationale, le chef de l’Etat, Klaus Iohannis a précisé que cette année, cette journée spéciale a été malheureusement, marquée par la pandémie. Du coup, il a lancé un message d’encouragement à ceux malades ou en souffrance, tout en remerciant les blouses blanches. « La leçon de la solidarité est plus vivante et plus actuelle que jamais. L’histoire nous a montré à plusieurs reprises que ce n’est qu’à force de rester unis qu’on arrive à s’adapter aux pires réalités et que cela dépend de notre volonté, en tant que nation, pour relever tous les défis ». La Fête nationale de la Roumanie a été marquée mercredi à travers tout le pays. Des milliers de personnes ont participé à la parade militaire organisée dans la capitale et qui a mobilisé 1500 militaires ayant défilé sous l’Arc de Triomphe. Ce fut la deuxième parade organisée en pandémie, mais la première à laquelle le public a pu assister.

La Roumanie bénéficie d’un premier versement du Plan national de relance et de résilience

Jeudi, Bruxelles a versé à la Roumanie 1,8 milliards d’euros de préfinancement, soit 13% de l’enveloppe totale que le pays se verra octroyer. Le reste de presque 2 milliards d’euros du montant total de préfinancement prévu pour 2021 sera accordé d’ici la fin de l’année. L’argent sera alloué par tranches, au fur et à mesure que le pays arrive à répondre à ses objectifs. Tout cet argent servira au démarrage des investissements et des réformes que la Roumanie s’est fixés dans le cadre du Plan national de relance et de résilience. Au chapitre de « La transition verte », le pays s’est proposé d’investir 3,9 milliards d’euros dans la modernisation et l’électrification des chemins de fer et dans la diminution des émissions de carbone. 2,7 milliards d’euros seront attribués à la rénovation et à l’enveloppement des immeubles et des sièges des institutions publiques afin d’accroître leur performance énergétique et leur résistance en cas de séisme. Le plan prévoit aussi 2 milliards d’euros d’investissements dans l’infrastructure hospitalière et dans l’amélioration du système éducationnel dans le domaine médical. Si elle arrive à répondre à toutes ses cibles, la Roumanie se verra octroyer une enveloppe totale de 29,2 milliards d’euros

La pandémie recule en Roumanie

La pandémie est en recul en Roumanie. Cette semaine les autorités ont rapporté la moitié des nouveaux cas dépistés une semaine auparavant. Les statistiques quotidiennes tournent autour d’un millier de cas. En même temps, l’intérêt de la population pour la vaccination anticovid a chuté. La moyenne quotidienne des nouvelles vaccinations a baissé à 10 000 par rapport à 16 000 la semaine d’avant. A présent, près de 7 millions et demi de Roumains sont immunisés au schéma complet contre le coronavirus, ce qui est toujours loin de la moitié de la population éligible. En même temps, selon l’Institut national de santé publique, environ 90% des décès liés à la Covid enregistrés la semaine dernière concernaient des personnes non vaccinées, alors que dans les rangs des personnes âgées de plus de 60 ans, les personnes décédées souffraient aussi d’au moins un autre maladie. De même, les rapports de plusieurs départements à travers le pays, y compris la capitale, font état d’un taux de contamination de 70% dans les rangs des personnes non vaccinées. Par ailleurs, sur toile de fond de l’apparition d’un nouveau variant de coronavirus, Omicron, découvert en Afrique du Sud, la Roumanie a rapatrié à l’aide de courses spéciales organisées par le gouvernement de Bucarest plusieurs ressortissants roumains restés sur le continent africain apprès la suppression des vols depuis et vers l’UE. Il s’agit de 46 Roumains et de d24 citoyens d’autres pays qui ont été ramenés depuis l’Afrique du Sud et de 122 Roumains et de 62 ressortissants européens qui ont été ramenés en Roumanie depuis le Maroc.

Le chef de la diplomatie roumaine a participé au Conseil des ministres de l’OSCE

Le chef de la diplomatie roumaine, Bogdan Aurescu, a participé ces jeudi et vendredi à la réunion du Conseil des ministres de l’OSCE, tenu à Stockholm. Lors de son allocution, Bogdan Aurescu a parlé de l’importance de faire croître la capacité de l’OSCE de gérer la situation de sécurité dans la région de la mer Noire et de trouver une solution aux conflits prolongés de la zone. Il a également souligné l’engagement de la Roumanie à défendre et à protéger les valeurs et les principes de l’OSCE figurant dans l’Acte final d’Helsinki de 1975 et dans la Charte de Paris pour une nouvelle Europe de 1990, deux documents se trouvant à la base de la sécurité européenne. Le ministre Aurescu a aussi fait référence à la sécurité énergétique, à l’instrumentalisation des migrants, au renforcement de la présence militaire aux frontières de l’Ukraine et aux nombreuses transgressions du cessez-le-feu dans l’est de l’Ukraine. Toujours devant le plénum du Conseil des ministres de l’OSCE, le chef de la diplomatie roumaine n’a pas manqué de réagir aux déclarations de son homologue russe, Serguei Lavrov, qui affirmait dans son discours national que le système du bouclier antimissile américain installé en Roumanie pouvait être utilisé pour des frappes offensives. Bogdan Aurescu a tenu à préciser que cette position russe était incorrecte et que la Roumanie, les Etats-Unis et l’OTAN avaient affirmé à plusieurs reprises que le bouclier antimissile de Roumanie avait un rôle strictement défensif, à servir uniquement en cas d’auto-défense légitime, comme prévu dans la Charte de l’ONU, n’étant d’aucune manière une menace à l’adresse de la Fédération de Russie. (Trad. Ioana, Valentina)

4 December 2021
September 17, 2021 UPDATE

CORONAVIRUS The government Friday passed a resolution making
the green certificate, attesting vaccination, negative testing or recovery from
COVID-19, compulsory upon entering
restaurants, gyms, or attending public and private events in areas where the infection rate is over 3 per
thousand. This is the same digital certificate required this summer for travel
within the EU. On Friday, authorities announced 4,478 new cases of COVID-19
infection in 24 hours, from over 46,000 tests.
In the same interval, 73 related fatalities were also reported and 762
patients treated in intensive care. Bucharest exceeded, on Friday, the
threshold of 2 per thousand inhabitants cumulated in 14 days, which brings the
capital city in the yellow zone. Meanwhile, on Thursday the National Committee
on Emergency Situations approved a new list of high-risk countries, valid as of
September 19. Bulgaria and France are now back in the yellow zone, and Spain is
listed as a green-zone country.

CONNECTING EUROPE Romania needs to step up investments in the rail
infrastructure, the European Commissioner for Transport Adina Vălean said on
Friday. Attending the arrival in Bucharest’s main railway station of Connecting
Europe Express, a special train designed in the European Year of Rail, she
explained that Romania must plan its investments well, come up to solid
projects and manage these investments as efficiently as possible. I am aware of
the situation of railways in Romania and I undertake to do everything in my
power to help finance and develop it, the interim transport minister Dan Vîlceanu
said in his turn. Connecting Europe Express will stop in stations in 26
countries during its five-week, 20,000-km journey, before arriving in Paris on
October 7. The train departed from Lisbon and, before reaching Paris, it will
stop in Ljubljana, connecting the Portuguese, Slovenian and French presidencies
of the Council of the EU.

VISIT The European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, will be in
Bucharest on September 27, the EC deputy spokesperson Dana Spinant announced on
Friday. She added that in the coming days the Commission will complete its
assessment of Romania’s National Recovery and Resilience Plan. Under the Plan,
Bucharest is set to receive over 29 billion euro, half of it in grants and half
in loans. Romania plans reforms and investments in transports, environment,
agriculture, healthcare, education, business environment, research, innovation,
digitisation as well as resilience in crisis situations. According to the
Commission, 18 states have already seen their national recovery plans approved,
and 12 of them have already received the first instalments of the funds for
investment projects.

COURT Romania’s Constitutional Court will discuss on September 28 the notification filed by the Liberal Prime
Minister Florin Cîţu’s Cabinet, in connection with an alleged constitutional
conflict with Parliament concerning the no-confidence motion filed by the
USR-PLUS alliance, a former junior coalition partner, and AUR, a nationalist
party, in the opposition. The Government denounced Parliament’s alleged
unconstitutional, disloyal and abusive behaviour towards the Government, as the
no-confidence motion tabled by the latter had allegedly been initiated, tabled
and communicated in terms that are against the Constitution. Pending the Court’s ruling, the debate and
vote on the motion are in standby, Parliament decided.

NEW
MEDIA ART The
biggest new media art event in Romania will be held on Saturday. iMapp
Bucharest – Winners league is also among the top three international video
mapping competitions. The works of teams from the US, Germany, Ukraine, Japan
and Hungary will be presented on the world’s biggest screening area, namely,
the façade of the Parliament Palace in Bucharest, of 23,000 sqm. The theme of
this year’s edition is The Show Must Go On and celebrates through works that
blend light, technology and music, the way in which people have been returning
to normal life.

NATO Chief of General Staff, Lieutenant-General Daniel
Petrescu is taking part over September 17-19 in the conference of the NATO
Military Committee, which brings together in Athens, Greece heads of military
from Allied countries. Talks will tackle NATO operations, missions and
activities. Additionally, the conference will also address means of
implementing the Deterrence and Defence of the Euro-Atlantic Area, and NATO’s
Warfighting Capstone Concept. According to the Romanian Defence Ministry, the
Military Committee will analyze the NATO 2030 initiative and all its military
implications and opportunities. (tr. A.M. Popescu)

17 September 2021