August 14, 2025 UPDATE
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 14.08.2025, 19:59
Rating. Romania is awaiting Friday’s decision by the International Financial Rating Agency Fitch on the country’s rating. Finance Minister Alexandru Nazare estimates that, following the measures taken so far by the authorities in Bucharest, it will be reconfirmed at BBB- with a negative outlook. He also said that the deficit level of 7.1% of the GDP forecast in this year’s budget will not be reached. In 2024, Romania had the largest budget deficit in the European Union – over 9.3% of the GDP. The governor of the National Bank, Mugur Isărescu, has warned that Romania is unlikely to meet this year’s deficit target of 7%, but added that the downward trend would be a very good sign.
Reforms. Prime minister Ilie Bolojan on Thursday had talks with local mayors about the main measures of the local administration reform bill, as part of the government’s second fiscal package aimed at reducing the budget deficit. The talks focused on ways to cut staff expenses by cutting jobs, property tax and expanding digitalisation. Bolojan also said that by cutting expenses and showing greater responsibility towards public money there is a big chance to overcome this difficult period. Mayors, however, were unhappy with the measures proposed. In another move, development minister Cseke Attila assured mayors that funding as part of the National Recovery and Resilience Plan will not be halted for any of the projects where works are under way, but only for projects that have not yet begun.
Protests. In Romania, teachers have continued their street protests demanding the repeal of fiscal and budgetary measures affecting the education system. Trade unionists are particularly dissatisfied with the increase in working hours and class sizes. They point out that the measure to merge educational institutions will create numerous problems not only for teachers and principals, but also for parents and children. The measures taken by the government are based on the current possibilities of Romania’s budget and the realities of the education system, said Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan at this week’s meeting with representatives of the Education Trade Union Federations. He asked the Ministry of Education to analyse the implementation of the new regulations and, where problems arise, to propose specific solutions to address them.
Summit. US president Donald Trump said he believed his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin is ready to make a deal to end war in Ukraine, but that such a deal can only be agreed after a meeting also attended by Ukraine’s president Volodymyr Zelensky. Trump is holding a meeting with Putin in Alaska on Friday, which the US president does not rule out may end in failure, according to France Presse and Reuters. Previously, Trump again warned Russia of “severe consequences” if Vladimir Putin does not agree to end war in Ukraine. On the other hand, Vladimir Putin hailed the United States’ “sincere efforts” to end the conflict in Ukraine and suggested that Moscow and Washington may reach a new agreement on nuclear arms control, according to France Presse and Reuters. Russia and the United States possess the biggest nuclear arms arsenals in the world. The latest nuclear disarmament agreement between the two countries is the New Strategic Arms Reduction treaty, which will expire on 5th February 2026. (CM)
