A look at the main stories in Romania this week
One of six new NATO command centres opens in Romania
The North Atlantic Alliance has set up six new command centres on its eastern flank, in response to the perceived threat from Russia. One is in Romania, with a similar mission to those in Bulgaria, Poland and the Baltic countries, aiming to reduce the deployment of rapid response NATO units and to provide exercise coordination. Around 40 officers will man each of the centres, which will become fully operational ahead of the next NATO summit, scheduled for July next year in Warsaw, according to a NATO spokesperson.
In Romania, the NATO Force Integration Unit is one of the two command and control structures to function in Bucharest. The unit provides liaison with the command structure in Naples, contributing to the planning of operations, military exercises and coordination of rapid deployment troops in case of necessity. 42 soldiers are running the structure, 27 of them from host country Romania. In an exclusive interview for Radio Romania, General Director for Strategic Affairs with the Bucharest Foreign Ministry, Dan Neculaescu, pointed out that Romania enjoys the highest level of security it has ever had since joining the North Atlantic Alliance, especially as a result of decisions to bolster the eastern flank.
The new fiscal code, the foremost bill on the agenda of Parliament this autumn, which was rejected for endorsement by President Iohannis, was passed by both chambers.
Last week, political leaders agreed that the bill would pass in its initial proposed form, already passed by the assembly two months before, but with some measures set to be applied in stages. The main provision is a slash in two stages of the VAT, first to 20% in January 2016 and then to 19% in 2017. Estimates indicate that if the measures pass and become part of the Fiscal Code, in addition to higher healthcare wages introduced by emergency executive order, would result in a budget deficit of around 1.7%. Prime minister Victor Ponta said that this would not cause any problems, since the lower revenues resulting from lowering the VAT would be covered by higher collection levels.
The law on wages and the postal voting law, as well as the budget bill, are also priorities for Parliament this autumn, alongside other bills on vocational education and a new system of royalties.
Romania, alongside the Republic of Moldova and the Romanian communities around the world celebrated Romanian Language Day on August 31st. A message by Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu states that the events held in many venues, including diplomatic missions, pay homage to Romanian history and culture, and the significant contribution that the Romanian language, an official EU language, brings to European and universal culture.
Embassies, consulates and cultural institutes around the world hosted concerts, folklore shows and poetry recitals, exhibitions dedicated to major Romanian writers, speeches, film screenings, theatre performances, ethnography festivals and meetings with Romanian communities. Romanian is native to around 30 million people, and is taught as a foreign language in 45 countries.
Bucharest is once again the venue for the George Enescu International Music Festival, one of the most prestigious of its kind in Europe. Over 3,000 Romanian and foreign artists in the world's musical elite will be seen as part of the festival. Among the participating orchestras this year are the San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, the Munich Opera Orchestra, the London Symphony Orchestra, the Vienna Philharmonic, the Saint Petersburg Orchestra, the Monte Carlo Philharmonic and the Amsterdam Orchestra. In his opening address, culture Minister Ionut Vulpescu said that the Enescu Festival is now part of Romania's national identity:
"The Enescu Festival was born in adverse times, has grown, overcoming much, and will live on. Its strength and significance stem from this continuity. It is our commitment and obligation towards Enescu and Romania, because this festival is part of our identity as a nation."
This event was held for the first time in 1958, three years after the famous Romanian composer passed away. It was discontinued in 1971 by the communist authorities, and resumed after the fall of the communist regime. It has been held every other year since then.
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