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The Week in Review

Romanias Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, and Foreign Minister, Luminița Odobescu, visited Chișinău

Romania supports the start of EU accession negotiations for the Republic of Moldova as soon as possible, the Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said on Wednesday in Chişinău, on his first foreign visit since he took office. He emphasized that the future of the Republic of Moldova is in the community bloc. The Romanian side showed availability to provide expertise to the Moldovan partners. In his turn, the Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean thanked Romania for all the support given to the Republic of Moldova in the process of joining the European Union, as well as in the economic and social fields. He emphasized that the relations on the two banks of the Prut River are increasingly being strengthened through the construction of bridges, roads and energy networks. Dorin Recean mentioned the existence of nine projects for the second installment of the aid provided by the Romanian Government. They are worth 28 million Euros and are aimed at investments for the development of localities in the Republic of Moldova, the Moldovan PM said. Early this week, the Romanian FM, Luminița Odobescu, paid a visit to the Republic of Moldova, her first external visit since taking-over her mandate. She was received by the pro-Western president Maia Sandu and had discussions with her counterpart Nicu Popescu. The two emphasized the support which Romania offered to the Republic of Moldova, consisting in humanitarian aid, energy resources and support for increasing resilience. Last but not least, the Romanian FM said that opening the EU accession negotiations for the Republic of Moldova in the shortest possible time is a priority of Romania’s foreign policy.

Romanian magistrates protested, discontented with the prospect of being left without special pensions

Magistrates from several courts and prosecutor’s offices across Romania suspended their activity on Wednesday, showing discontent with the Governments intention to change the conditions under which they can obtain special pensions. Judges and prosecutors argue that changing the special pension scheme would violate the independence of the judiciary. The ruling coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party – PSD and the National Liberal Party – PNL wants to gradually increase the retirement age for judges and prosecutors up to 65 years, and for the pension to be calculated based on their income from several years, not just from the last year of activity. The Justice Minister, Alina Gorghiu, said that she respects the magistrates’ right to free expression, but insisted that dialogue, not protest, is the solution to any problem of the judicial system. The reform of the legislative framework regarding the special pensions scheme is a promise made to the European Union by the Romanian authorities under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. On the other hand, on Thursday, the draft law on the abolition of special pensions for senators and deputies received a favorable opinion, gathering a majority of votes, in the specialized Parliament committee. The president of the committee, the Social-Democratic MP Eugen Bejinariu explained that, if unconstitutional elements of the bill are identified, other solutions will be found to reduce or eliminate the special pensions of parliamentarians.

Measures announced by the Romanian Government

The prices of some basic food products may decrease in the next period, the Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu announced on Thursday. He claims that this decrease will not put pressure on Romanian producers. Marcel Ciolacu stated that he received a response from the large store chains regarding the scheme for reducing markup percentages. It is a list that contains basic foodstuffs such as bread, dairy products, meat, eggs, flour, corn flour, oil, vegetables and fruit. Also on Thursday, the Government discussed, in a first reading, the state aid scheme for Romanian producers of construction materials. In principle, the authorities want more materials produced in the country to appear on the internal market at competitive prices, which will lead to a reduced import of construction materials. Now, over 70% of the materials used are imported, and the Government wants to reduce this percentage. This years budget for the aid scheme could be 150 million Euros, but the Finance Ministry will have the final say. The Executive also approved the granting of emergency aid to support the population affected by floods, landslides and dangerous meteorological phenomena, up to the amount of 1.4 million Euros. Households in the center, south-west and south of the country were affected, this month, by heavy rainfalls. The support and intervention of the military firefighters was needed to remove the negative effects generated by the bad weather.

Development plan for gas deposits in the Romanian area of the Black Sea

OMV Petrom and Romgaz have approved the development plan for the Domino and Pelican Sud commercial natural gas fields in the Romanian area of the Black Sea. The National Agency for Mineral Resources is to confirm this plan. The investment amounts to 4 billion Euros for the development phase, and the total production will be 100 billion cubic meters, the equivalent of the annual demand for natural gas for 4.3 million households. According to the management of OMV Petrom, in 2027, the first amounts of gas are to be extracted through the Neptun Deep project, and Romania will become the largest producer of natural gas in the European Union. The project will last approximately two decades, and the revenues brought to the state budget will support Romania’s development. OMV Petrom states that the estimated revenues of the Romanian state would be 20 billion Euros. (LS)

24 June 2023
The Week in Review

Romanias Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, and Foreign Minister, Luminița Odobescu, visited Chișinău

Romania supports the start of EU accession negotiations for the Republic of Moldova as soon as possible, the Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said on Wednesday in Chişinău, on his first foreign visit since he took office. He emphasized that the future of the Republic of Moldova is in the community bloc. The Romanian side showed availability to provide expertise to the Moldovan partners. In his turn, the Moldovan Prime Minister Dorin Recean thanked Romania for all the support given to the Republic of Moldova in the process of joining the European Union, as well as in the economic and social fields. He emphasized that the relations on the two banks of the Prut River are increasingly being strengthened through the construction of bridges, roads and energy networks. Dorin Recean mentioned the existence of nine projects for the second installment of the aid provided by the Romanian Government. They are worth 28 million Euros and are aimed at investments for the development of localities in the Republic of Moldova, the Moldovan PM said. Early this week, the Romanian FM, Luminița Odobescu, paid a visit to the Republic of Moldova, her first external visit since taking-over her mandate. She was received by the pro-Western president Maia Sandu and had discussions with her counterpart Nicu Popescu. The two emphasized the support which Romania offered to the Republic of Moldova, consisting in humanitarian aid, energy resources and support for increasing resilience. Last but not least, the Romanian FM said that opening the EU accession negotiations for the Republic of Moldova in the shortest possible time is a priority of Romania’s foreign policy.

Romanian magistrates protested, discontented with the prospect of being left without special pensions

Magistrates from several courts and prosecutor’s offices across Romania suspended their activity on Wednesday, showing discontent with the Governments intention to change the conditions under which they can obtain special pensions. Judges and prosecutors argue that changing the special pension scheme would violate the independence of the judiciary. The ruling coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party – PSD and the National Liberal Party – PNL wants to gradually increase the retirement age for judges and prosecutors up to 65 years, and for the pension to be calculated based on their income from several years, not just from the last year of activity. The Justice Minister, Alina Gorghiu, said that she respects the magistrates’ right to free expression, but insisted that dialogue, not protest, is the solution to any problem of the judicial system. The reform of the legislative framework regarding the special pensions scheme is a promise made to the European Union by the Romanian authorities under the National Recovery and Resilience Plan. On the other hand, on Thursday, the draft law on the abolition of special pensions for senators and deputies received a favorable opinion, gathering a majority of votes, in the specialized Parliament committee. The president of the committee, the Social-Democratic MP Eugen Bejinariu explained that, if unconstitutional elements of the bill are identified, other solutions will be found to reduce or eliminate the special pensions of parliamentarians.

Measures announced by the Romanian Government

The prices of some basic food products may decrease in the next period, the Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu announced on Thursday. He claims that this decrease will not put pressure on Romanian producers. Marcel Ciolacu stated that he received a response from the large store chains regarding the scheme for reducing markup percentages. It is a list that contains basic foodstuffs such as bread, dairy products, meat, eggs, flour, corn flour, oil, vegetables and fruit. Also on Thursday, the Government discussed, in a first reading, the state aid scheme for Romanian producers of construction materials. In principle, the authorities want more materials produced in the country to appear on the internal market at competitive prices, which will lead to a reduced import of construction materials. Now, over 70% of the materials used are imported, and the Government wants to reduce this percentage. This years budget for the aid scheme could be 150 million Euros, but the Finance Ministry will have the final say. The Executive also approved the granting of emergency aid to support the population affected by floods, landslides and dangerous meteorological phenomena, up to the amount of 1.4 million Euros. Households in the center, south-west and south of the country were affected, this month, by heavy rainfalls. The support and intervention of the military firefighters was needed to remove the negative effects generated by the bad weather.

Development plan for gas deposits in the Romanian area of the Black Sea

OMV Petrom and Romgaz have approved the development plan for the Domino and Pelican Sud commercial natural gas fields in the Romanian area of the Black Sea. The National Agency for Mineral Resources is to confirm this plan. The investment amounts to 4 billion Euros for the development phase, and the total production will be 100 billion cubic meters, the equivalent of the annual demand for natural gas for 4.3 million households. According to the management of OMV Petrom, in 2027, the first amounts of gas are to be extracted through the Neptun Deep project, and Romania will become the largest producer of natural gas in the European Union. The project will last approximately two decades, and the revenues brought to the state budget will support Romania’s development. OMV Petrom states that the estimated revenues of the Romanian state would be 20 billion Euros. (LS)

23 June 2023
The Week in Review (27.06 – 03.07.2022)

Russia
is no longer a partner, but a threat

The
NATO Summit in Madrid is one of the most significant Allied meetings
in recent years in terms of results for Romania – said Romania’s
President Klaus Iohannis. He pointed out that the central theme of
the discussions held, and of the decisions made at the summit, was
the military invasion of Romania’s neighbor, Ukraine, by the
Russian army, and that NATO’s new strategic concept, adopted at the
summit, adequately reflects the current security situation. Thus,
Russia is no longer considered a partner, but is labeled as the most
significant and direct threat to the security and stability of the
Allies. For the first time, Communist China is accused of using a
wide range of political, economic and military activities to project
its power around the world. China’s avowed ambitions and its coercive
policies pose challenges to our interests, security and values -
said the NATO member states’ representatives, who also point a
finger at the strategic partnership between Beijing and Moscow
against the international order. NATO has also confirmed the
strengthening of its military presence on the Eastern flank,
including in Romania. Its reaction force increases from 40 thousand
to over 300 thousand highly trained soldiers. This is the most
important reorganization of our collective defense since the Cold
War NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg unerlined, while US
President Joe Biden said that we are here and we
are proving that NATO is more necessary than ever. He announced,
in turn, a strengthening of the U.S. military presence throughout
Europe. NATO has also promised to support Ukraine, for as long as
necessary, to resist the Russian armed invasion. Secretary-General
Stoltenberg said that support for Kyiv was a moral and
political obligation.

Romania
and the gas crisis

One
of the EU Member States least dependent on Russian hydrocarbon
imports, Romania can become energy independent, a supplier of energy
security in the region, and a transport corridor for gas and green
energy from the Caspian Sea – says the Romanian Energy Minister
Virgil Popescu. He participated on Tuesday, together with the Prime
Minister Nicolae Ciuca, in the ceremony organized in Vadu, in
Constanta County (south-east), on the occasion of the launch of the
natural gas exploitation as part of the Midia project. Minister
Popescu said that the natural gas reserves in the Romanian Black Sea
area amount to 200 billion cubic meters. The extraction of natural
gas from the Midia area is the first project of its kind in the
Romanian Black Sea area in the last 30 years, and in June the first
amounts of gas have already entered the domestic market. In turn,
Prime Minister Ciuca said that 41% of Romania’s gas storage
facilities is currently filled, and, by November 1, this amount will
reach 80 %.

Social
policies for crisis situations

Legal
entities that want to postpone paying their loan installments must
prove that, in the last three months, they have suffered losses of at
least 25%, and individuals must show that their monthly expenses
increased by 25% – shows a government decision made by the governing
coalition made up of PSD-PNL-UDMR, which thus hopes to mitigate the
effects of the recent price hikes. The deferral of loan installments
is valid for a maximum of nine months, and only on loans without
arrears in the last six months. Postponing the payment of loan
installments for those affected by the price increase is a temporary
advantage – warned expert Adrian Mitroi, a professor at the Academy
of Economic Sciences in Bucharest. He explained, on Radio Romania,
that the postponement brings, in fact, an additional cost. When the
debtor resumes payment, the amounts due monthly will be higher, as
they will also include certain additional bank fees. The government
also adopted a draft law that will help students and young people to
receive bank loans, 80% of which will be guaranteed by the state. In
the case of students, the guarantee is about 10,000 Euros, and in the
case of young couples, about 15,000 Euros, the equivalent in lei, the
national currency, at the exchange rate of the day.

The
law of silence in Romania

The
head of the European Public Prosecutor’s Office, former chief
anti-corruption prosecutor in Bucharest, Laura Codruţa Kovesi,
announced that she is looking into appealing to the European
Commission for activating the mechanism of conditioning European
funding in order to defend rule of law in Romania. According to an
EPPO press release, the reason is the content of a law recently
passed by Parliament, reflecting a European directive on protecting
whistleblowers. The main concern is that the bill could discourage
them in Romania, more specifically with regard to uncovering fraud
involving European provided funding, according to an EPPO press
release. Many Romanian civic organizations announced they would file
complaints with the People’s Ombudsman against the bill on protecting
whistleblowers, pointing out that Romania risks sanctions,
considering that the prospective law samples selectively the European
directive relevant to the issue.

Florin
Citu resigns again

On
Wednesday, meeting in plenary session, Romanian senators have
dismissed the speaker of the chamber, after filing Florin Citu’s
resignation. Previously, Citu had stated that his resignation had
been requested by Liberal Party chairman, PM Nicolae Ciuca, and by
party secretary general Lucian Bode, who had informed him that he no
longer has party support for the position of speaker. He claimed that
he was blamed for the statements he made for years against the Social
Democratic Party social and salary policies, a party that is in
coalition partnership with the Liberals. According to some Romanian
journalists, Florin Citu is a very competent economist, for others a
ridiculous character, and he ascended the political ladder as fast as
he fell off of it. For as long as he was favored by President Klaus
Iohannis, he was PM and National Liberal Party chairman, then he
supposedly fell out of grace and lost both positions, in favor of
Reserve General Ciuca. The interim speaker position will be held by
Liberal Alina Gorghiu, a former MP with controversial bill proposals,
also seen as a protege of the head of state. Two years prior, she
proposed that people with prison sentences of less than seven years
serve their detention at home, an initiative that sparked waves of
criticism.

2 July 2022
The Week in Review 2-8.05.2022

Ukraine at the forefront of diplomatic actions

While in Ukraine attacks of the invading Russian army continue, Romania receives visits of high-level officials who want to thank and encourage Romania for its support to Kyiv. Early this week the President of Germany, Frank-Walter Steinmeier came to Bucharest where he met with President Klaus Iohannis, who took the opportunity to highlight that it was crucial that the European Union and the Member States should continue to support both Ukraine and the Ukrainian refugees, while also stressing the need to adopt new sanctions against Russia. Klaus Iohannis also pointed out that all war crimes committed by the Russian troops should be thoroughly investigated and punished by the international justice, reiterating that Romania would support this process. The Romanian head of state also said that Bucharest supported the European Commissions proposal related to the ban on oil imports from Russia, pointing out that Romania had prepared for this situation. Stating that the German people were impressed by the solidarity and humaneness of Romanians towards the Ukrainian refugees, Frank-Walter Steinmeier said, in turn, that Germany would be by Ukraine’s side during the difficult period. The visit of the first lady of the United States, Jill Biden, to Romania was also announced for this weekend. The program includes meetings with U.S. military and diplomatic personnel, displaced Ukrainian parents and children and humanitarian aid workers.

A transaction of strategic importance

The Romanian state-owned company Romgaz bought on Tuesday, with one billion Euros, the 50% stake of the American company ExxonMobil in the ʹNeptun Deepʹ exploitation project in the Black Sea, which contains about 100 billion cubic meters of natural gas. Romgaz will collaborate with OMV Petrom, which is also part of this strategic project for Romania, which wants to become independent from an energy point of view, and also to produce energy for its neighbors and partners in the European Union. The first amounts of gas from the ʹNeptun Deepʹ perimeter could enter the consumption network in almost five years. However, before the start of gas extraction from the Black Sea, investors are waiting for the amendment of the offshore law, which is already in Parliament for debate and approval. The current version seems to be more balanced for both the State and the interested companies than the law passed four years ago.

The Constitutional Court is renewed

Bogdan Licu, first deputy prosecutor general, proposed by the Social Democratic Party, has this week obtained most of the MP’s votes for taking over the position of judge at the Constitutional Court in Romania – CCR. On behalf of the Senate, Iuliana Scântei, proposed by the National Liberal Party – PNL was also voted as a judge at the Constitutional Court. The nominations from the two ruling parties were criticized by the opposition Save Romanian Union – USR, which accused them of failing to observe the professional criteria and of promoting to the CCR persons who are subservient to the current power. The two newly appointed judges will take over their positions in June, when the mandates of the current president of the Court, Valer Dorneanu, and of judge Mona Pivniceru expire. The term of office of judge Daniel Morar, appointed by the Presidency in 2013, also expires next month. The Constitutional Court is made up of nine judges with a nine-year term of office. Three are appointed by the Chamber of Deputies, three by the Senate and three by the President of Romania. The Court is renewed by one-third of the number of judges every three years. Meanwhile, the Court continues to work. On Thursday, the Court declared unconstitutional the procedure by which the law to eliminate the special pensions of parliamentarians was adopted last year. More than 70 former MPs went to court for losing these rights and won the case at 11 courts across the country and at a Court of Appeal.

The verdict in the Colectiv case, postponed again

The Bucharest Court of Appeal has postponed for the fifth time giving the final verdict in the case opened after the fire at the Bucharest club Colectiv, in which 64 people died, over 200 were injured and one subsequently committed suicide. The new deadline is May 12. On the evening of October 30, 2015, shortly after the start of a rock concert on the stage of the Colectiv club sheltered by a disused former factory, the fireworks used in the show lit the sponge used for cushioning the overcrowded hall, which had only one single escape door. Some spectators died on the spot, others were severely affected by flames and smoke and stampeded towards the exit. The victims’ relatives have long been waiting for justice to be done. In the first instance, the mayor of sector 4 at that time, Cristian Popescu Piedone, city hall officials, the clubs owners, two firefighters, two pyrotechnics workers and representatives of a fireworks company received convictions of 4 up to 13 years.

Gopo Awards

The National Theatre in Bucharest has this week hosted the 16th edition of the Gopo Awards Gala, which celebrates excellence in Romanian cinema, which has been quite appreciated internationally in recent years. Babardeală cu bucluc sau porno balamuc — ‘Bad luck banging or looney porn’ written and directed by Radu Jude, was the big winner of the Gopo trophy for Best Film in 2021. The film protagonist, Katia Pascariu, won the Best Actress in a Leading Role Award. Most of the trophies were, however, awarded to Malmkrog, by filmmaker Cristi Puiu, who received the Best Director Award. The film also won the Best Picture Award, Best Makeup and Best Hairstyle, Best Costumes and Best Production Design Awards. The Best Actor in a Leading Role award went to Bogdan Farcaș, the protagonist of the film Unidentified, rewarded with a Gopo trophy for Best Screenplay. Two of the most valuable actors in Romania, Victor Rebengiuc and Mariana Mihuţ, received Lifetime Achievement Awards. (LS)

7 May 2022
The Week in Review 4- 10 November 2019

A new Liberal government has been invested in Bucharest.

On Monday evening, joining for a common session, Romania’s two-chamber Parliament voted for the investiture of a new government, headed by the leader of the National Liberal Party PNL, Ludovic Orban. Although the new government needed only 233 votes to pass, that is half plus one of the total number of senators and deputies, they got 240 votes in the context in which the Liberals hold only about 20% of the number of votes in Parliament. The most numerous group the Social Democratic Party and its splinter group Pro Romania boycotted the voting. Voting for the investiture of the new government were the representatives of the Save Romania Union, the People’s Movement Party, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, the national minorities group as well as several MPs from Pro Romania party who disregarded the order of the their leader, the former Social Democratic PM Victor Ponta, not to vote. Thus, a Liberal government has taken over from the Social Democratic government headed by Viorica Dancila, dismissed on October 10 through a motion of no confidence.

In comparison with the numerous Social Democratic government, the Liberals opted for a government formula consisting of 16 ministries alone. Some of the priorities of the new cabinet are the budget adjustment and the 2020 state budget. Among the new ministers are personalities whose competence has been recognized by their very adversaries, namely the lawyer Catalin Predoiu who will take the justice minister seat, the diplomat Bogdan Aurescu who will be foreign minister and general Nicolae Ciuca who will serve as defense minister. The new government will also include ministers who received a negative vote in the special parliamentary committees such as Ion Ştefan, for the public works ministry, Violeta Alexandru, for the labor ministry and Florin Cîţu for the public finance ministry. This composite team will govern Romania for one year, until the scheduled parliamentary elections in the fall of 2020. However, this government is very fragile, given that the small groups that voted for its investment have their own agendas and requirements, often diverging, and any motion of no confidence could pass quite easily, analysts say.

MEP Adina Valean is Romania’s proposal for European Commissioner for Transports, accepted in Brussels.

The Liberal MEP Adina Valean is Romania’s proposal for European Commissioner for transport accepted by the EC’s president-elect Ursula von der Leyen. The latter had interviews with the two candidates proposed by the Romanian government, namely MEPs Siegfried Muresan and Adina Valean. A spokesperson for the EC transition team said that both candidates did well at the interview with the EC president, who eventually chose a woman. Adina Valean is an MEP with a lot of experience who led the EP’s Committee on the Environment and she is currently the president of the European Parliament’s Committee on Industry, Research and Energy (ITRE). According to EU officials, in time she has accumulated a lot of experience in relation to transport issues.

Last week, the EC expressed ‘serious doubts’ as to the proposal for transport commissioner made by the former Social Democratic government being ‘legitimate’, given that the former PM Viorica Dancila had not consulted the president Iohannis over the proposal. Dancila had proposed Victor Negrescu for the position, a former minister delegate for European Affairs. The previous two nominations made by the Social Democrats equally failed: Rovana Plumb failed the integrity test in the legal committee due to her wealth declaration. And Dan Nica, a former minister, didnt even get to the hearing stage, since the Dancila Cabinet was in the meantime removed from office after a no-confidence motion in Parliament. Romania’s candidate will be interviewed by the EP Committee on Transport on November 14 after being heard in the legal committee which verifies the integrity of candidates. The investiture vote in the new committees is to take place at the end of the month, for the new EC to start its activity on December 1.

The EC estimates the Romanian economy will grow slightly this year.

The growth rate of the Romanian economy will see a slight increase this year to reach 4.1% of the GDP, before slowing down to 3.6% in 2020 and 3.3% in 2021, according to the European Commissions autumn forecast. Also, the Commission expects inflationist pressure in Romania to drop from 4.1% in 2018 to 3.9% in 2019 and to return to the figure targeted by the National Bank of Romania, namely 2.5 plus/minus 1% in 2020. The European Commission warns that the budget deficit will rise to 3.6% this year following significant pay rises in the public sector.

The first round of the presidential vote started in the Diaspora.

The campaign for the presidential election in Romania has ended. The Romanian citizens living abroad already started the vote on Friday to elect a president for the next five years. Its for the first time that elections are taking place over a 3-day period in the Romanian diaspora, both in the first and the second round. The first round is taking place until Sunday and the second between the 22nd and the 24th of November. The president of the Permanent Electoral Authority said recently that this years presidential election in Romania is the most expensive so far. The total amount allocated is around 150 million Euros, of which 50 million is spent on the voting process abroad. To avoid long queues like in the past, 835 polling stations were created, twice as many as in the previous elections. The most numerous polling stations are in Spain — 143 and Italy — 142. In Germany there are 79 stations, 72 in the UK and 50 in France. Besides the citizens going to the polls, there will be more than 43 thousand Romanians who chose to vote by post, according to the portal www.votstrainatate.ro. In Romania the citizens with the right to vote can cast their ballot during one single day, on Sunday, November 10, and November 24 respectively. There are 14 candidates running for the presidential office, both from parliamentary and non-parliamentary parties and independents.

9 November 2019
The Week in Review 15-21.07.2019

Overview of Romania’s presidency of the Council of the EU in the European Parliament

Romania will continue to support the European project and will equally focus on completing its integration, said the Romanian PM Viorica Dancila on Tuesday in the plenum of the European Parliament, where she presented an overview of Romania’s presidency of the Council of the EU in the first half of 2019. The Romanian PM underlined that Bucharest managed to show that the European institutions are working in the interest of the citizens and to provide prospects for the future. Europe should not have more speeds, PM Dancila told the MEPs, and there should be no gaps among member states, given that progress is going to be thorough and benefits for the citizens measurable if countries work together, cohesion being one of the strongest binding forces of the European project.

The PM also added that Romania was at the helm of the Council of the EU in a period of challenges, in the context of Brexit and the EP elections but it still managed to finalize 90 pieces of legislation related to copyright on the Single Digital Market, to amending the directives on natural gas, to the European Border and Coast Guard Agency and to improving reaction to cyber attacks. During its presidency of the Council of the EU Romania proved its capacity to bring added value to the EU, PM Dancila also said.

A Romanian in NATO’s leadership

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg has decided to appoint Mircea Geoana from Romania as the next Deputy Secretary General. Mr. Geoana will take up his post in mid-October 2019. According to Mr. Stoltenberg Mircea Geoana, the first Romanian to hold this senior office, is a staunch advocate of the transatlantic bond and will bring long experience as a statesman and diplomat to this post. So far, the highest position held by a Romanian within NATO was that of Assistant Secretary General for Emerging Security Challenges. The post was held between 2013-2017 by Sorin Ducaru, who was the head of the Emerging Security Challenges Division. Mircea Geoana is the founder and president of the Aspen Institute Romania and he previously served as President of the Romanian Senate, Foreign Minister, and Romania’s Ambassador to the United States.

After the announcement made by Jens Stoltenberg Mircea Geoana wrote on a social network that his appointment was a huge challenge and an opportunity to represent the interest of the Alliance, which ensures the security of more than 1 billion people. The Romanian diplomacy has hailed Mircea Geoana’s appointment to the post and considered the decision a special moment for Romania’s NATO membership, which acknowledges Romania’s important contribution within NATO 15 years after its accession to the Alliance.

The Constitutional Court and reviewing the Constitution

Proposals to amend the Constitution that would forbid pardoning or amnesty for acts of corruption run counter to the law, as ruled by the Constitutional Court on Thursday in Romania. The proposals were made after Romanians went to the polls on May 26, in a referendum called by the president. They voted to turn down proposals made by the ruling coalition for changes to the penal code that would have drastically reduced penalties for acts of corruption; the changes were planned under the form of government orders, but were challenged in the highest courts. President Klaus Iohannis called the referendum to stop what he referred to as the assault of the ruling coalition on the entire judicial system.

The courts argument was that outlawing pardoning or amnesty would violate the principle of equality before the law, and would be paramount to a suppression of human dignity. At the same time, the other proposals for amending the Constitution submitted by the coalition in power and the opposition have been declared constitutional. One such proposal provides that citizens who have been sentenced to definitive terms in jail for premeditated violations would be barred from running in parliamentary, local, European Parliament, and presidential elections. Also, according to the same bills, there will be an end to abusing government orders, and they will be available for a constitutionality review which the president will be able to call. The reviews can also be called by the Constitutional Court, 50 deputies or 25 senators, as well as by the Ombudsman.

Romanian triumph at Wimbledon

Romanian tennis star Simona Halep won her first Wimbledon title in the singles, and the first for her country, facing off against super-champion Serena Williams.

This is what she said in the aftermath: “I am happy with how I played, and the way in which I reacted to such an important event and such a great day. I reached a high level, and I feel much more confident. I never thought I would become number one and that I would win a Grand Slam, but this has been the dream, and that is why I worked so much every single day. As I keep saying, Romanians are very talented, but we lack confidence in ourselves. We should try to improve, believe in ourselves, and see things in a more positive light.”

Back in the country, she presented her trophy on the National Arena stadium for tens of thousands that came to share in her joy. It is Simonas second Grand Slam, which she won in Roland Garros last year.

20 July 2019
The Week in Review (20 – 26.05. 2019)

European Parliament elections and referendum on justice in Romania

Hundreds of millions of European citizens are expected to the polls between May 23 and 26 to elect the future European Parliament members, for a 5-year term. The elections started on Thursday in Great Britain and the Netherlands, and will come to an end on May 26 in most member states, including Romania. 751 MEPs will be elected, of whom 33 Romanian. This has been the last week of campaign for the EP elections in Romania. Running in the race were 13 political parties and 3 independent candidates.

441 polling stations were set up for the Romanians abroad, most of them being in Italy, Spain and the neighboring Republic of Moldova. In Romania, simultaneously with the EP elections, a referendum on justice will be held, which was called by President Klaus Iohannis. Voters will receive 3 ballots, one for the EP elections, and one for each of the 2 questions of the referendum. Romanians over 18 are called to answer by ‘YES or ‘NO to the following questions: ‘Do you agree with forbidding amnesty and pardon for corruption crimes? and ‘Do you agree with forbidding the Government to adopt emergency decrees in relation to crimes, punishments and judicial organization and with extending the right to challenge decrees directly to the Constitutional Court?

Under the law, the referendum is validated if the turnout is at least 30% of the number of people registered on the permanent electoral lists. The result of the referendum is validated if the valid votes account for at least 25% of the people registered on the permanent electoral lists.

Regulating taxi apps alternatives

The governments draft emergency decree regulating the ridesharing service in Romania has been put up for public debate until June 3. The decree emerged after alternative service companies asked for the urgent regulation of their services by the government, so as to able to continue to operate. After several rounds of negotiation, the representatives of the ridesharing companies on Thursday reached an agreement with the government officials over the draft emergency decree on taxi apps in Romania.

The new regulation will provide for equal conditions of authorization for both taxi apps alternatives and taxi companies. The owners of taxi apps will be obliged to obtain authorization from the Communications Ministry for their activity, and the partner drivers will have the observe the technical and legal requirements which regular taxi drivers observe during their authorized activity of transporting passengers against payment.

More than 200 thousand Romanians signed a petition for urgently regulating the ridesharing services, the Coalition for Digital Economy Association, an independent organization representing the main ridesharing companies, has announced. According to them, the lack of regulation resulted in revenue loss for thousand of drivers and 2.5 million users either could not find a car or had to pay prices three times bigger. Taxi companies, constantly criticized for the poor quality of services, retorted by accusing ridesharing companies of operating illegally.

Famous criminal files

The former mayor of Constanta (a port on the Black Sea Coast) Radu Mazăre on Monday was brought back to Romania from Madagascar, from where he was extradited. Radu Mazăre fled to Madagascar in December 2017. He has received sentences in several corruption files, but the definitive sentence, which led to the issuance of an international arrest warrant, was given in February by the supreme court, in a file concerning the illegal land redistribution in the city of Constanta. He has to serve a 10-year sentence in this case.

The former mayor left Romania in late 2017 after he had been subject to legal restrictions pending trial. He justified his fleeing the country by invoking the political pressure being put on the prosecutors dealing with his case. In Madagascar he asked for political asylum. Also on Monday the High Court of Cassation and Justice in Bucharest postponed for May 27 pronouncing its verdict in a corruption case involving the Social Democratic leader Liviu Dragnea, who was accused of incitement to abuse of office.

Dragnea was sentenced in a court of first instance by a jury made up of 3 judges to serve 3 years and a half in prison for incitement to abuse of office, although he pleaded not-guilty at the previous hearing. At the same time, the defense lawyers asked, without success though, for a postponement of the verdict to wait for a decision of the Constitutional Court regarding a notification made by Social Democratic MP Florin Iordache in relation to the illegality of juries of 3 judges at the High Court of Cassation and Justice. The Court postponed making a decision for June 5.

Flooding in Romania

This week too Romania has been under code yellow and code orange alerts for unsettled weather, storms, torrential rainfalls and floods. Scores of villages and towns in the north, center and south of the country have been affected including Bucharest. Road and rail traffic has been temporarily disrupted due to fallen trees. The overflowing waters of some rivers flooded hundreds of hectares of farming lands, pastures and households. (translation by L. Simion)

25 May 2019
The Week in Review 26.11 – 01.12.2018

Parliament marks the Centennial of the Great Union

The Romanian Parliament on Wednesday held a special session dedicated to the celebration, on December 1, of the Great Union that created the Romanian state. President Klaus Iohannis said that, 100 years from the event, politicians irrespective of party or doctrine should say whether they want to continue to promise a lot and deliver little, or if they have the daring and sense of responsibility to build a foundation for Romania in its second century. Klaus Iohannis said that Romanians have high hopes for the future of their country, and rightful expectations from its leaders. PM Viorica Dancila made a call to unity among the political class. Among the guests of honor at the solemn session in Romanias Parliament were invited former presidents Emil Constantinescu and Traian Basescu, as well as members of the government and diplomats accredited to Romania. Also present were the president of the Romanian Academy, the National Bank Governor, the president of the National Association of War Veterans, the Patriarch of the Romanian Orthodox Church, as well as representatives of the Roman Catholic and Greek Catholic churches.

Romanians around the world celebrate national day

Many ceremonies are being held these days in the country and abroad to celebrate the national day of Romania, December 1st, which this year marks 100 years since the creation of the Romanian nation state. Bucharest was host to the biggest parade since 1990. Parading under the Triumphal Arch were 4,000 soldiers, with over 200 vehicles. 500 enlisted men from 22 allied and partner countries marched alongside Romanian troops. A military parade was held in Alba Iulia, the city considered to be the place where the Great Union was put into being. At that event, 1,600 soldiers marched, with 150 vehicles and 23 aircraft. Iasi was declared by Parliament a historical capital of Romania, and Alba Iulia was declared Capital of the Great Union in recognition of its contribution. The national day was also celebrated in theater of operations where Romanian soldiers are deployed, and in countries all over the world, with cultural events that highlight Romanias role in history, organized by Romanian Cultural Institute offices, in collaboration with Romanias diplomatic missions. The European Parliament held an exhibition on the Romanians who have changed the world. December 1 became National Day after the anti-communist revolution of 1989. It commemorates the day in 1918, at the end of WWI, when the Romanian nation state united, gathering together all the provinces with a majority Romanian population formerly within multinational empires.

The France-Romania Season starts in Paris

The France – Romania Cultural Season started in Paris with an event attended by presidents Klaus Iohannis and Emmanuel Macron. The event is included in the roadmap of the strategic bilateral agreement, including hundreds of projects to run until July 14, 2019. This covers cultural events, as well as events in the areas of education, innovation, economy, business, gastronomy, tourism, sports, as well as local cooperation, with the purpose of strengthening the ties between the two countries. Klaus Iohannis emphasized the fact that Romania is scheduled to take over the EU Council presidency on January 1st 2019. He said that Romania and France would celebrate European Union values in an ample common cultural project. French President Emmanuel Macron said that the cultural season has a symbolic nature, and is the first one organized by France alongside an EU member country, considering that culture cements Europe. The two presidents have signed a political statement to renew the strategic partnership. Iohannis also met in Paris representatives of the Romanian diaspora in France, urging them to stay united and stay involved in Romanias development.

Senate passes pension bill in Bucharest

The Romanian Senate has passed a pension bill tabled by the majority party. It provides for a gradual increase in pensions for the next three years, reducing the retirement age for the so-called first and second labor groups, and taking into consideration higher education years when calculating seniority. The minimum employment period in order to qualify for collecting retirement benefits is still 15 years. The Democratic Union of Hungarians in Romania proposed an amendment, accepted by the majority, to provide the possibility for mothers of three or more children to retire early. The opposition has criticized the bill. The National Liberal Party voted against it, while Save Romania Union abstained. Senators in the majority said that the bill answers demands from associations representing retirees, and corrects inequities in the system. The newly appointed minister of labor, Marius Budai, said that the additional costs the bill incurs can be covered. The bill now goes to the Chamber of Deputies, which will provide the decisive vote in December.

Cold wave hits Romania

A yellow-code alert has been issued for snow and strong wind in Bucharest and almost half of the counties, mostly in the south and southeast. In places, winds blew as hard as 75 km/h, with visibility in places as low as 100 meters. Road traffic has been disrupted in the affected area, with delays for railway traffic and airlines. Ports on the Romanian side of the Black Sea are inoperable. Even after the warning expires, very cold weather is expected to continue all over the country.

1 December 2018
The Week in Review 26.03-01.04.2018

100 years since the union of Bessarabia with Romania

On March 27th, the Romanian Parliament organized a solemn session to celebrate 100 years since the union of Bessarabia with Romania. A declaration was adopted, reading that Parliament deems legitimate the wish of those citizens of the Republic of Moldova who support the union with Romania as a natural step in the process of the development and affirmation of the Romanian nation. A province with a predominantly Romanian-speaking population that was part of the Tsarist Empire for 106 years, Bessarabia became united with the Motherland in 1918. Years later, in 1940, the Soviet Union re-annexed it under an ultimatum, and the present-day Republic of Moldova was created on part of that territory. With the aim of stifling and denying the Romanian identity of the local population, the Soviet authorities invented a Moldovan language and identity, different from the Romanian one.

Also, during each and every election held in Moldova, there is a fierce battle between the politicians who support the country’s European integration and those who would like to bring Moldova back under Russia’s sphere of influence. We should not forget that in 1992, Moscow supported with troops the pro-Russian separatist ambitions in Transdniester, where Russian heavy weapons still exist. Therefore, things are by no means simple, and a reunification with Romania would take time. Until reunification becomes a genuine topic of discussion, Romanian officials agree that what is important right now is to strengthen the special relations between Romania and the Republic of Moldova and support the European and Euro-Atlantic efforts of that small east-European state, which is the poorest in Europe.

On Wednesday, Transgaz Romania officially took over the similar company in the Republic of Moldova, Vestmoldtarnsgaz. On that occasion, Romania’s Prime Minister Viorica Dancila said: “As of today, we can say that Transgaz became a regional player, and at the same time we are happy to witness the energy interconnection between Romania and the Republic of Moldova.”

The contract signed on the occasion will facilitate the building of the Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline, which will be a continuation of the pipeline that is now linking the city of Iasi in north-eastern Romania with Ungheni, in the east of Moldova.

The never-ending modification of the justice laws

The opposition National Liberal Party and Save Romania Union have for the second time notified the Constitutional Court with regard to the three justice laws on the status of magistrates, the organization of courts and the functioning of the Superior Council of Magistracy. The opposition accuses the ruling coalition of not taking seriously the changes advised by the Court and claims that, even changed, they still leave plenty of room for abuse and put a question mark over the independence of the Romanian judiciary.

Liberal MP Gabriel Andronache gives an example: “On the day they were passed, in the Senate’s plenary session an amendment was introduced to the law amending and completing Law 303, defined by the parliament majority as ‘technical-legislative correlation’, when it actually changed the definition of judicial error. It is unacceptable, in our opinion, for something like that to happen in parliamentary procedure. There are also many reasons referring to the content of these amendments which continue to make these regulations toxic for the Romanian justice system.”

The ruling Social Democratic Party argues the amendments have been made democratically and that the reformed justice laws are more necessary than ever. Here is the Social-Democratic leader Liviu Dragnea: “They have been challenged at the Constitutional Court and the Court has ruled that, with the exception of several articles, all laws are constitutional. Now we are going to se what they have challenged. Constitutional Court justices are going to analyze them again. This desperation will eventually end. “

Romania’s Constitutional Court has announced it will tackle the new notifications regarding the amendments to the justice laws by April 19th.

A new diplomatic row: Russia against everyone

Russia has decided to play victim and respond to the West in keeping with the principle of reciprocity, vehemently denying any involvement in the nerve agent attack against the former Russian double agent Serghei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Great Britain on March 4. According to the British police, a large quantity of neurotoxin has been detected on the entrance door of Skripal’s house.

As a strong signal conveyed to Moscow that it cannot defy international legislation over the use of chemical weapons, about 150 Russian diplomats from North America, Europe and Australia have been expelled in solidarity with Britain. Furthermore, in the United States, the Trump administration has closed down the Russian consulate in Seattle arguing that the premises were too close to the largest nuclear submarine base in the US. The Foreign Ministry in Bucharest has also announced that a Russian diplomat will be declared persona non-grata and expelled from Romania.

Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu has explained that a solidarity signal is needed mainly in the Brexit context, in order to prove that the EU wants to continue to have a very strong relationship with London in the field of defense and security even after Britain’s leaving the bloc. According to the Russian Embassy in Bucharest, Romania’s decision is probably the manifestation of what it calls “collective political madness”. Later in the week, the Sergei Skripal scandal got new proportions with Russia pledging reprisals against all the countries that chose to react to it.

31 March 2018
The Week in Review 21-27.08.2017

A draft to reform Romania’s Justice System

Since its EU accession in 2007, Romania has registered remarkable successes in reforming its justice system. The country’s progress in this field has not remained unnoticed by Brussels, which has been strictly monitoring the process. Now the European Commission has called on the government in Bucharest to provide more details on a draft aimed at reforming the country’s justice system. The draft, which was made public by the field minister, Tudorel Toader, on Wednesday, has sparked off heated debates in Romania of late. The irreversibility of the headway Romania has made in the anti-corruption fight in the past decade is essential to the European Commission, the EU Executive says in a statement.

The draft, which attracted a lot of heat from the opposition in Bucharest, has been described by Romanian President Klaus Iohannis as “an attack against the rule of law”. Coming six months after an attempt by the centre-to-left government to relax anti-corruption legislation in Romania, the initiative also provides for trimming the prerogatives of the National Anti-corruption Directorate (DNA), which could not investigate the justices. The draft provides for many amendments, from the way in which chief prosecutors are appointed to setting up a special unit in charge of monitoring the magistrates. “If this mixture of measures is adopted by the government and approved by Parliament, Romania’s efforts of the past 10 years will be erased and the justice system will be thrown back to an era, when it was subordinated to the political class” — the Romanian head of state has argued.

Under the legislation in force, chief-prosecutors are appointed by the president, upon proposals by the Minister of Justice and after the consultative agreement of the Higher Council of Magistracy (CSM), the body that guarantees the independence of the judiciary. At the same time, Toader proposed that the politically appointed Minister of Justice take control over the CSM’s judiciary inspection unit. Analysts and magistrates believe this thing would foster the interference of politics in the justice system. At the same time, the General Prosecutor’s Office considers these proposals as an alarm signal, admitting the prosecutors have not been consulted.

Emmanuel Macron visits Bucharest

In a speech delivered at the French Embassy in Bucharest, the French President Emmanuel Macron also warned that, in their current form, the proposed changes of the justice law were not in line with the promises Romania made to carry on with the anti-corruption fight. The French President on Thursday paid his first official visit to Romania where, alongside his Romanian counterpart, Klaus Iohannis, agreed on the deepening of the bilateral strategic partnership. Several agreements have been signed, including one on the production of state-of-the-art tactical missile systems.

President Iohannis underlined Bucharest’s interest in boosting French investments and cooperation between France and Romania as regards the consolidation of the European project, while reiterating Romania’s firm wish to be admitted into the Schengen area. He underscored that Romania had already acted de facto as a responsible state and had participated in all the efforts meant to strengthen the EU’s external borders. The president argued that Romania’s Schengen accession would consolidate common security and would send a strong message in support of the EU.

In turn, Emmanuel Macron said that France was determined to work together on the road map to consolidating the future of the EU, the Euro Zone and all the efforts to be made in the future, as France is well aware that Romania is firmly determined to be integrated into a Europe that is set to go ahead, the Euro Zone being an element of convergence in this regard. During his one-day visit to Bucharest, the French President also met with the PM Mihai Tudose.

Bucharest and the situation in Afghanistan

Romania, alongside other NATO allies, has hailed the announcement by the U.S. President Donald Trump on stepping up the military campaign against insurgents in Afghanistan. The White House leader has ruled out a prospective U.S. pullout from that country, expressing confidence that “a hasty withdrawal would create a vacuum that terrorists, including ISIS and Al-Qaeda, would instantly fill”. In Bucharest, the Romanian defence minister, Adrian Ţuţuianu, has said Romania, which is NATO’s forth largest contributor of troops, might supplement the number of troops which take part in the “Resolute Support” mission.

This week, military of the “Brave Hearts” Force Protection Infantry Battalion in Focşani have taken over the Romanian missions unfolding in the theatre of operations in Afghanistan from the 151st Infantry Battalion “Black Wolves” of Iasi, as part of NATO’s Resolute Support Mission. The over 600 Romanian troops will have as main task to secure the Kandahar base, going on patrol missions alongside other coalition military, the Afghan army and police. The Romanian military will also secure the largest airport in southern Afghanistan.

The region continues to raise problems in terms of security. The latest incident, during which a Romanian military was also injured, occurred two weeks ago. Data issued by the Romanian Defence Ministry show 25 Romanian military have died in the line of duty in Afghanistan since 2001, when Romania started taking part in missions in that country. Another 100 Romanian military have got injured so far in that theatre of operations.

26 August 2017
The Week in Review (April 1-7)

Towards a unitary pay law in Romania

The pay system in Romania is not based on a hierarchy established by taking into account the importance of work, education, seniority and professional experience. In time, this state of facts has produced abnormalities that would be hard to imagine in other EU countries. The current coalition Government formed by the Social Democratic Party and the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats wishes to fix the situation by drafting a unitary pay law in the public sector. The bill is to be submitted to Parliament next week and endorse by the end of its current session. The law will instate equal treatment of all those who carry out the same type of activity and have the same seniority. Another criterion is that of hierarchy, according to which the head of an institution should not be paid less than his or her subordinates. In the entire Romanian budget sector, the ratio between the smallest and the highest salary will be 1 to 12. Also, the new bill establishes a calendar of salary increases next year. The political opposition in Bucharest is contesting the measure, saying the bill is unrealistic, because there is not enough money for all the planned increases. In turn, the Governor of the Central Bank of Romania Mugur Isarescu has stated that salaries must grow, but in a controlled manner, because Romania has reached its current economic and financial balance with huge sacrifices.

Romanian Justice and Anticorruption

Political decision-makers in Bucharest are trying to amend the criminal legislation in order to put it in line with the Constitution while at the same time carrying on the fight against corruption. The Justice Minister Tudorel Toader has announced this week that he has operated a number of changes in the Criminal Code and the Criminal Procedure Code, which are currently under public debate. The changes target the definition of abuse of office in keeping with a ruling issued last year by the Constitutional Court. In brief, the minister has stated that there will be no cap to the damage caused in case of abuse of office and the judge is the one deciding whether the person on trial should be punished or not. In another move, Minister Toader has announced that the line ministry has advised against the changes to the conflict of interests bill, and has come up with its own proposal, amending the provisions concerning this offense. Also, Tudorel Toader has stated that an external audit will be conducted at the General Prosecutor’s Office, the National Anticorruption Directorate and the Directorate for Investigating Organized Crime and Terrorism, given that the activities carried out by these bodies have not been evaluated in more than ten years. The audit will establish, among other things, the number of files that each prosecutor works on, deadlines, cases reported to the European Court of Human Rights and the number of citizens who did time in prison for no reason.

Changes in the Romanian Government

Only three months after taking office, changes have occurred in the Romanian Government headed by the Social Democrat Sorin Grindeanu. On February 23rd, the ministers of justice, economy, European funds and business were replaced. Back then, the changes were operated by the Social Democratic Party, the winner of 45% of the votes cast at the parliamentary elections held in December last year. This week, it was the other partner’s turn to make changes. The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats in Romania (ALDE), the junior partner in the government, has appointed for the office of Minister of the Environment and Deputy Prime Minister Gratiela Gavrilescu, a former minister for the Relation with Parliament. Her former office was taken over by the leader of the ALDE group in the Senate, Viorel Ilie. A week earlier, the ALDE leadership had decided to withdraw its political support for the co-president of the party, Daniel Constantin, then Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of the Environment, due to the growing divergences between him and the other co-president of the party, the Senate Speaker Calin Popescu Tariceanu.

A victim of the recent attack in London

The Romanian Ambassador to London has announced the death of the Romanian woman who had been seriously injured during the March 22nd attack in London. Thus, the death toll has risen to 5. The 31-year old Romanian had fallen into the Thames, after the attacker rammed into pedestrians on Westminster Bridge. Her boyfriend, the other Romanian tourist who was wounded, was released from hospital shortly after the attack claimed by the Islamic State terrorist organization.

New Medals for Romanian Inventors

Every year, Romanian inventors return home from international exhibitions with medals for inventions with immediate application. This year too they have won many awards at the International Exhibition of Inventions in Geneva, the most prestigious such event in the world. The 45th edition of the exhibition was held between the 29th of March and April 2nd. The Romanian inventors participating in the event came back home with 34 gold and 8 silver medals, as well as 10 special prizes. Also, the foreign delegations attending Romania’s Day at the Exhibition awarded the Romanian participants another 17 prizes. Romania participated in the Geneva exhibition with 40 works funded from the state budget, and another 8 funded by the inventors themselves.

In another development, the first tests on components that will be part of the biggest laser facility in the world, to be built in Magurele, near Bucharest, have started this week. The laser facility is to be rendered operational in 2019 and it will be 1000 times more powerful than any other laser that currently exists in the world.

8 April 2017
The Week in Review (2-8.05.2016)

The local elections campaign has officially begun in Romania

The campaign for the local elections due on 5th of June officially began in Romania on the 6th of May. This will be the first election test for political parties this year. The campaign ends on the 4th of June, and mayors will be elected in one round of voting. Competing are mainstream parties such as the Social Democratic Party, the National Liberal Party, the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians, the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe, the National Union for the Progress of Romania and the People’s Movement Party, as well as newly created parties, given that under a new law regulating political parties, starting in 2015, a party may be created with only 3 members. This is the third time in Romania’s post-communist history that a technocratic government is organising the elections, after Theodor Stolojan’s government in 1991-1992 and Mugur Isarescu’s government in 1999-2000. The voting will be held at more than 18,000 polling stations. The country’s interior minister Petre Toba says preparations for the elections are on schedule.

The healthcare sector again in the spotlight.

Prime minister Dacian Ciolos has asked the health minister Patriciu Achimas Cadariu to find a solution as soon as possible to grant authorisation to a lab able to test the disinfectants used in hospitals, the government’s spokesman Dan Suciu has announced. He said it was the responsibility of the ministry and, implicitly, that of the government, to ensure the decent functioning of the Romanian healthcare system. Controls have been carried out in hospitals following revelations in the media that the disinfectants provided by the main supplier of disinfectants for Romanian hospitals have a significantly lower concentration than that indicated on the label. Checks conducted in 300 hospitals have shown, however, that in 95% of the cases the disinfectants used by doctors and nurses are efficient. The health minister has given assurances that patients are safe. In a report drawn up in 2014 by the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, Romania was in the top position in a ranking measuring the resistance to treatment of the bacteria found in hospitals.

Romania has a new minister of culture.

Finding a solution to the situation at the Bucharest Opera and protecting the national heritage are two of the priorities of the new minister of culture, Corina Suteu. She also said she would continue dialogue with the independent sector and civil society and focus on public cultural institutions and on improving the legislation. Attending Suteu’s swearing-in ceremony, president Klaus Iohannis told the new minister that she was taking over the ministry at a difficult time and amid high expectations. Corina Suteu replaces Vlad Alexandrescu, who stepped down at the prime minister’s request following criticism over his handling of the scandal at the Opera, where three directors were replaced within just one month. Corina Suteu previously worked as a secretary of state in the ministry of culture and as a director of the Romanian Cultural Institute in New York.

Decisions within the Social Democratic Party.

The revocation of Valeriu Zgonea as speaker of the Chamber of Deputies has been postponed and will be discussed at the next sitting. Zgonea says the move is illegal and accuses the Social Democrats of wanting the position for their own personal and group interests. Valeriu Zgonea was earlier excluded from the Social Democratic Party soon after he criticised the party’s leader, Liviu Dragnea. The latter refused to resign from the party despite receiving a 2-year suspended sentence for election fraud committed during the 2012 referendum on the impeachment of president Traian Basescu.

The debt discharge law comes into effect on 13th of May.

President Klaus Iohannis has signed the debt discharge law, after previously sending it back to Parliament to be re-discussed. People who have taken out mortgage loans below 250,000 euros and who can prove they can no longer afford to pay their rates may ask the bank to take over their homes and write off their debts. Tens of thousands of Romanians have collected overdue rates on their mortgages and many are facing foreclosure, as have people who have taken out personal loans using their homes as collateral. According to figures released by the National Bank, there are currently 300,000 families who have taken out a mortgage loan. The debt discharge law does not apply to persons who have bought their homes using the First Home government scheme. Several banks have already increased the amount of the required down-payment for mortgage loans.

European commissioner Corina Cretu travels to Romania.

On a visit to Romania, the European Commissioner for Regional Policy Corina Cretu has warned that Bucharest must step up its absorption of European funds, given that not a single euro of the money allocated for 2014-2020 period has been spent. The commissioner is also concerned about the absorption of cohesion funds allocated to Romanian cities, whose absorption deadline has been extended by June. This is the first time in the history of the European Union that some of its budget will be managed by the cities themselves, said Corina Cretu. According to the deputy Prime Minister Vasile Dancu, the government is working on the simplification of procedures for the absorption of European funds, saying Romania’s absorption rate may skyrocket in the coming years.

7 May 2016
The Week in Review, 19-25 July

The pros and cons of the new fiscal code

Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta said he
wanted that the issue of the new Fiscal Code to be resolved by September 1st.
The bill was last week sent back to Parliament for debates by the country’s
president Klaus Iohannis who argued that the fiscal relaxation it envisages
could produce serious economic imbalances. The Prime Minister defended the
bill, saying the new code, which, among other things, stipulates a series of
tax cuts, particularly the VAT and which was discussed with the representatives
of the business community and passed by Parliament, will keep Romania on the
path to economic development. Ponta says the new fiscal code will be discussed
again:

Maybe after August 15th we’ll hold
a special meeting, first in the Senate, as this is the first Chamber, and then
in the Chamber of Deputies. Of course we will vote in favour of the Fiscal Code
and I believe it will be signed into law by September 1st so that
all those who make their investment and job creation plans for 2016 should know
they have something clear they can rely upon.

The president’s rejection of the Fiscal Code has caused a series of
divergences between the ruling coalition and the Liberal opposition, which
supported the president. The Social-Democrats, number one in the government,
lashed out at the National Liberal Party, the main opposition force, accusing
them of petty politics, given that they initially voted in favour of the bill
in Parliament. The Liberals explained that in spite of their yes vote, they
have constantly voiced their doubts regarding the sustainability of the fiscal
relaxation the new code envisages.

Amendments
to the new election law in Romania

Romanian president Klaus Iohannis has
promulgated the law on the election of senators and deputies and on the
organisation and functioning of the Permanent Election Authority. The law
amends the rules for the election of MPs and gives more prerogatives to the
Permanent Election Authority. The new law also reintroduces the proportional
representation voting system used until 2008. Under the new election law, the
number of MP seats will be cut by more than 100. Thus, the number of senators
and deputies will stay at maximum 466 as compared to 588 at present. The 5%
threshold for parties to enter Parliament will be maintained but the new law
also provides for a threshold varying between 8 and 10% in the case of
electoral alliances.

After the flawed staging of the 2014
presidential elections, when many Romanians living abroad were unable to cast
their ballots due to huge queues at the polling stations, the new election law
has a special provision to help voters abroad: polling stations will also be
set up in places where there are at least 100 Romanian registered voters. The
condition is that they must have their names and addresses included in the
Election Registry following a written application to the Permanent Election
Authority.

The Social Democratic Party, the senior partner in the ruling coalition
in Bucharest, has a new interim leader

Liviu Dragnea is the new interim leader of the Social
Democratic Party, the senior member of the left-wing ruling coalition in
Romania, until the next party congress in November. The decision was taken by
the Social Democrats leadership body following the resignation of Victor Ponta
after five years as leader of the party. Ponta, who is also Romania’s prime
minister, is currently under criminal investigation. The new leader said the
party is united and, together with its coalition partners, the National Union
for the Progress of Romania led by Gabriel Oprea and the newly-created Liberal
and Democratic Alliance, would continue to support Victor Ponta’s cabinet.

The Liberal opposition says the appointment of Liviu
Dragnea shows that Victor Ponta has lost the political support of his party and
called for his resignation as prime minister. Dragnea served as executive
president of the Social Democratic Party and a development minister, but had to
resign after receiving a one-year suspended sentence in the court of first
instance in a case related to the 2012 referendum on the impeachment of the
then president Traian Basescu.

Hans Klemm has been proposed as the new US ambassador to Romania

Proposed by president Barack Obama as the new US
ambassador to Romania, Hans Klemm was heard by the US Senate Committee on
Foreign Relations. Klemm pledged to consolidate ties with Bucharest and support
the institutions fighting against corruption. Romania, which he described as an
excellent ally and strategic partner of the United States, has a key role to
play in ensuring prosperity in south-eastern Europe, said the American
diplomat, who also urged Bucharest to invest in its energy infrastructure.
Since the end of Mark Gittenstein’s tenure as US ambassador to Bucharest in
December 2012, the US embassy has been run by a charge d’affaires.

25 July 2015
The Week in Review, July 6-10

Romania under the effect of a heat wave

A hot week followed by storms is the meteorologists forecast for this week. Wednesday was the hottest day of the year, with temperatures that exceeded 39 degrees Celsius in western Romania, and two counties under a code yellow alert. Code yellow and orange alerts were in place for the whole of Romania, with temperatures frequently reaching 35 to 37 degrees Celsius. Also, the temperature humidity index exceeded 80 units. Speed limits were set for trains to ensure traffic safety. Meteorologists have warned that the month of July will be defined by very warm weather dotted with thunderstorms.

Victor Ponta resumes his tasks as Prime Minister

Romanias Prime Minister resumed, on Thursday, his tasks as head of the government, which, for the past three weeks, had been taken over by deputy PM Gabriel Oprea. Ponta returned to Romania on Wednesday after having undergone a knee surgery in Turkey in mid-July. On the day of the surgery, July 15th, the Romanian PM was supposed to appear before the Romanian anti-corruption prosecutors as ten days before he had been informed he was being prosecuted for forgery, accessory to fiscal evasion and money laundering. He allegedly committed the crimes while a lawyer and they are related to a case involving his party colleague, Dan Sova, former transport minister in the Ponta Cabinet.

European money for Romanias infrastructure

Nine million and a half euros in European funds will be made available to Romania by 2020 for the construction and upgrading of motorways and water and energy networks. The money can be accessed after the signing on Friday in Bucharest of the Large Infrastructure Operational Program. This is the largest investment program in Romania and the second largest one in the EU in terms of investment volume. The European Commissioner for Regional Policies, Romanian Corina Cretu, has said in Bucharest that under this program, the Romanian Government has committed to making running water available to all Romanians, from public sources, by 2020. The priority infrastructure projects for the European Commission as far as Romania is concerned are the motorways connecting Sibiu to Pitesti, Bacau to Pascani and Targu Neamt to Ungheni. The latter will be connecting Romania to the Republic of Moldova. With the Romanian government co-financing these projects, the total investment will stand at 12 billion euros.

The National Statistics Institute makes public fresh economic data

Romania’s Gross Domestic Product went up in the first quarter of 2015 by 4.1% as compared to the same period last year with the Romanian economy also seeing a 1.5% growth as against the last quarter of 2014, according to a second provisional report made public by the National Statistics Institute (INS). Romania’s economy last year saw a 2.8% growth as compared to 2013. The National Forecast Committee has upgraded to 3.3% its forecast on the country’s economic growth. According to the IMF, Romania’s economy will go up by 2.7% this year. The World Bank has also upgraded Romania’s economic growth rate from 2.9% to 3% for this year. According to the National Statistics Institute, the annual inflation rate stood at minus 1.6% in June, down from 1.2% in April, while the monthly inflation rate has reached 2.95%. The inflation rate in June shows a drop in prices by over 2% as against May, while the annual index will stand at around minus one percent. However, it is important for the population not to perceive this drop as deflation, Central Bank Governor Mugur Isarescu has said.

Romanian and Italian foreign ministers hold talks in Bucharest

Businesspeople in Italy have confidence in the stability of the Romanian economy, for which reason over 100 new Italian companies are adding to those already operating in Romania almost on a monthly basis. The statement was made by the head of Italian diplomacy, Paolo Gentiloni who held talks in Bucharest with the Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu on the bilateral ties. Romania and Italy have an excellent relationship, that of a consolidated strategic partnership, Bogdan Aurescu said in his turn. The Greek crisis and the migration issue were also discussed by the two officials. The value of the Romanian-Italian trade exceeded 12 billion euros.

Romania supports the Republic of Moldova

Romania is the staunchest supporter of the Republic of Moldova in its EU integration process, said Romania’s president Klaus Iohannis in Suceava, in the north-east, where his Moldovan counterpart, Nicolae Timofti, received the Doctor Honoris Causa title from the city’s Stephen the Great University on Tuesday. President Timofti received the Doctor Honoris Causa title at the ‘Stephen the Great’ University in Suceava, for special merits in promoting the Republic of Moldova’s EU integration efforts, for deepening its relations with Romania, as well as for his focus on education and the training of the young generation. President Iohannis hailed the democratic manner in which local elections were held in Moldova and said that the country needed to make efforts to reform the state.

11 July 2015
The Week in Review 23-30 November

The Social Democratic Party is in turmoil after losing the presidential elections

Tense, long but necessary is how prime minister Victor Ponta described the meeting of the Social Democrats’ National Executive Committee, the first to bring together the party’s leaders after Victor Ponta lost the presidential elections. One of the things agreed in the meeting was that the Social Democratic Party must stay in power. Following the departure of the Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians from the ruling coalition, the Dan Diaconescu Party of the People said it was willing to take its place in the government alongside the National Union for the Progress of Romania, the Conservative Party and the Reformist Liberal Party. Another important decision taken by the Social Democratic Party was to expel three of its prominent members from its ranks. Victor Ponta explains:

“The 80 colleagues who voted in favour of exclusion felt it was time to part ways, so that each could follow our own path. We also spoke about the future and the fact that a team must show cohesion in order to be able to overcome difficult moments.”

Fresh from the meeting, Marian Vangheline, one of the people excluded from the party, a former vice-president of the party, was very open about his feelings:

“Never in my life have I seen such an execution. Not even in the Communist Party. They are afraid of a free Congress and wanted us out of the way.”

A new Congress of the Social Democratic Party will be held in March. By then, the Social Democrats plan to come up with a new political project and a new team to rid itself of such labels as “communist” and “corrupt”.

The National Anticorruption Directorate makes public its activity report

Romania’s president elect Klaus Iohannis says corruption is Romania’s biggest internal problem of national security and one that leads to social and economic segregation and a reversal of values. Therefore, he says, the country’s political class is in dire need of moral cleansing. According to the chief prosecutor of the National Anticorruption Directorate, Laura Codruta Kovesi, people’s confidence in the institution she runs has grown. This is demonstrated, she says, by the large number of complaints filed by citizens and public institutions, with the exception of intelligence services, which informed 83% of all cases opened in the first ten months of the year. Laura Codruta Kovesi:

“So far, in 2014 we have received over 1,600 complaints and reports from private individuals and legal entities, compared to 1,032 in 2010. In my opinion, people will only ask the help of an institution if they have confidence in it and know they have a reasonable chance to receive a correct solution to their problem.”

No less than 1,007 persons have received corruption sentences this year alone.

Investigators look at suspicious deal worth tens of millions of euros

The National Land Return Authority, which is responsible for the return of land nationalised by the communist regime, is under scrutiny by anticorruption prosecutors. The body’s former head, Crinuta Dumitrean, has been arrested for a temporary period of 30 days, while its former vice-president Oana Vasilescu is under investigation as part of a case that also involves the chief of the organised crime and anti-terrorism body, Alina Bica, who is already under arrest.

The three are accused of abuse of office while serving in a committee handling the return of land confiscated during the communist regime. In 2011, they are suspected of approving the payment, to a businessman, of compensations amounting to three times the actual value of the land. This cost the state no less than 60 million euros. The Liberal Democrat MP Catalin Teodorescu and the ethnic Hungarian MP Marko Attila Gabor were also part of the committee, so prosecutors have requested the Chamber of Deputies to approve their arrest. It appears that businessman Dorin Cocos was also involved. The former husband of presidential candidate and head of the People’s Movement Party Elena Udrea, Cocos is believed to have requested 10 million euros in exchange for securing approval of the overvalued compensation.

High-profile names are involved in the Microsoft corruption scandal

A senator of the National Union for the Progress of Romania and former government secretary general, Serban Mihailescu was indicted by the National Anticorruption Directorate for his involvement in the Microsoft case regarding the purchase of IT licences for Romanian schools. Mihailescu is accused of asking for money in exchange for using his influence to benefit Fujitsu Siemens Computers, a Microsoft licensee in Romania. Suspected of abuse of office, the former Social Democrat education minister Ecaterina Andronescu was herself indicted as part of this case, along with 9 other former ministers from different governments, both right and left of centre.

Other persons under investigation are the businessmen Nicolae Dumitru and Dorin Cocos, as well as the former communications minister Gabriel Sandu and the mayor of Piatra Neamt, Gheorghe Stefan, all of whom are in temporary arrest, where they may spend another 30 days if the Supreme Court approves the extension of their temporary arrest warrants.

The Republic of Moldova holds parliamentary elections

The result of Sunday’s parliamentary elections in the Republic of Moldova will decided which way the country will be heading — West or back, to Russia. According to opinion polls, the three pro-European parties currently in Parliament may together obtain 40% of the votes, while the Party of the Communists has 20% of voting intentions. In Bucharest, where the entire political class supports Moldova’s European future, the result of Sunday’s vote is awaited with anticipation.

30 November 2014