August 24, 2015 UPDATE
For a roundup of domestic and international events, click here.
Newsroom, 24.08.2015, 12:15
MIGRANT CRISIS — French president Francois Hollande and German chancellor Angela Merkel called for a “united” response on behalf of Europe to the migrant crisis. Their meeting was aimed at giving a new impetus to a Euro-wide response to the refugee issue, by harmonising the migration and asylum policies. In an interview on the public broadcaster ARD, German vice-chancellor Sigmar Gabriel has said the record high wave of refugees who seek asylum in Germany is the biggest challenge his country has been facing since reunification, 25 years ago. In another move, he has criticised the passiveness of other European countries, arguing that migration and asylum policies in the EU should be strengthened and unified, and the refugees should be equitably distributed to the member states. The German government estimates the number of asylum seekers will amount to the record high of 800,000 by the end of the year. In the field, on Sunday, thousands of migrants, mostly Syrian refugees crossed Macedonia and entered Serbia, resuming their travel to Western Europe, after the Macedonian authorities, who announced they had closed their borders, seemed to have abandoned the efforts to stop them by force. According to the European Border Surveillance Agency, the number of migrants to the EU amounted to 340,000 in the first seven months of the year, 100,000 of which were registered last month alone. Most of them flee conflicts in Syria and other Middle East countries.
STRIKE — Air traffic controllers announced they would go on an all-out strike starting September 1 because the company’s board did not respect any of the agreements previously agreed upon. On July 15, air traffic controllers called a two-hour strike, unprecedented for Romania. Employees are unhappy with the collective employment agreement. ROMATSA executive director Ion Aurel Stanciu said the protests and threats are ungrounded, given that 12 of the total 14 demands put forward so far have been resolved, and that the board is willing to continue negotiations.
NEGOTIATIONS — Negotiations on the increase of salaries in the education system will resume after September 15, when the enactment of the salary law and the fiscal code will have more clear-cut effects, Education Minister Sorin Campeanu said on Monday. The Government discussed proposals to raise salaries in a session attended by representatives of trade unions, Prime Minister Victor Ponta and the ministers of education, finance and labour. The Federation of Free Trade Unions says the Government must come up with solutions to push a 15% increase in teachers’ salaries by January 2016. We recall that the authorities have announced a 25% increase in salaries in the healthcare system starting October 1.
MILITARY EXERCISE — Military from Italy, Spain and the US will parachute on Wednesday into training camp in Galati County as part of the Swift Response 15 military exercise, the US Embassy in Bucharest reported on Monday. The exercise is underway until September 13 in Bulgaria, Germany, Italy and Romania. Taking part are over 4,800 military from Romania, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain and the United States. Swift Response 15 provides for several airborne assaults staged simultaneously in Romania, Germany and Bulgaria, followed by subsequent training. This is the largest NATO air exercise in Europe since the end of the Cold War.
TENNIS — Romanian Simona Halep has re-become WTA’s second ranking tennis player, following her qualification to the finals of the Cincinnati Tournament. She was however outclassed in the final by the main favourite of the tournament, WTA’s 1st ranked Serena Williams, 6-3, 7-6 (5). Halep and Williams had met six times until Sunday, the overall score of the games being 5-1 for the American player. In another move, Simona Halep withdrew from the New Haven tournament in Connecticut, with 689,063 dollars prize money up for grabs. Halep, first seeded in the New Haven Tournament, which started on Sunday, withdrew from the competition after accusing pain in her left leg.
BACCALAUREATE — The autumn session of the Romanian Baccalaureate exam continued on Monday with the Romanian language test. The results will be made public on August 31 and students may contest them on the same day. The final results will be revealed on September 3. Some 55,000 students have enrolled in the autumn session of the Romanian Baccalaureate.
STOCK MARKETS — The Stock Exchanges in the United States and Europe on Monday fell sharply as fears of a Chinese economic slowdown continue to hunt investors. The market in Shanghai shrinked by 8,5%, the largest in the last eight years, despite the authorities’ attempts to dispel investors’ concerns. According to the BBC, the latest measure announced in Beijing is to allow the state pension fund to invest in the stock market. The Chinese Governments thus hopes to boost demand and cause a hike in stock prices. The Euro on Monday hit its record-high value this year, exceeding 1,17 dollars. The price for oil also dropped to 38,76 dollars per barrel, the lowest in the last six years.
