December 4, 2014 UPDATE

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România Internațional, 04.12.2014, 12:15

IMF — The IMF and the European Commission support the budget rectification approved Wednesday by the Romanian Government, the minister delegate for budget, Darius Valcov said Thursday. The rectification brings more money to the healthcare and defense ministries, among others. This positive rectification was due to a higher absorption of European funds and increased budget returns, the government official says. A joint mission of the IMF and the European Commission is in Bucharest for talks with the Romanian authorities on the draft budget law for 2015.

GREY ECONOMY — Romania’s grey economy is estimated at almost 29% of the GDP, more over the European average, which stands at 19%, shows a study made by the consultancy company PricewaterhouseCoopers and by Mastercard. The study also includes a set of measures for the reduction of tax evasion, measures that have already been adopted by other countries. The measures include the limitation of daily cash receipts the organization of fiscal lotteries and the compulsory use by all trade companies of cash registers connected online to the systems of the fiscal authorities. In Romania the money supply in circulation, which fuels the development of the grey economy, amounts to almost 60% of the GDP, that is 6 times more than the average amount reported in the EU.

SUPPORT — Romania continues to support Georgia in its efforts to join the European Union and NATO, Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu said on Thursday upon meeting with his Georgian counterpart Tamar Beruchashvili on the sideline of the OSCE Foreign Ministers meeting in Basel, Switzerland. Aurescu reiterated Romania’s support for the process of implementing the Association Agreement Georgia has signed with the European Union this summer, recalling that Romania was the first EU Member State to ratify the document, as it did with the agreements signed by Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova. In addition, Aurescu gave assurances that Bucharest supports the EU Monitoring Mission in Georgia, to which Romania contributes a large group of officials. Also on Thursday, the Romanian Foreign Minister met with his Hungarian counterpart Peter Szijarto.

PARTNERSHIP — Romanian Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu on Thursday met with US Secretary of State John Kerry on the sideline of the OSCE Foreign Ministers meeting in Basel, Switzerland. On this occasion, Aurescu reiterated our country’s support for developing the Strategic Partnership with the United States, a central pillar of Romania’s foreign policy. Aurescu extended an invitation to the US official to visit Romania next year to mark 135 years of bilateral diplomatic relations between Romania and the United States. In addition, the two officials discussed preparations to set up the military base in Deveselu, southern Romania, which is to host elements of the US anti-ballistic shield in Europe, as well as the political situation in the Republic of Moldova following last Sunday’s parliamentary elections. Moreover, in his speech, Aurescu referred to European security against the backdrop of the developments in Ukraine and the frozen conflicts in the Black Sea area.

GOVERNMENT — The three pro-Western parties in the Moldovan ruling coalition on Thursday agreed to continue in the current format following last Sunday’s parliamentary elections. The Liberal-Democratic Party, the Democratic Party and the Liberal Party together have won 55 of the 101 seats in Parliament. The Socialist and Communist Parties have also entered Parliament. The two parties call for closer relations with Russia. Voter turnout stood at 56%. No notable incidents were reported, according to international observers. The new Parliament is due to elect the forthcoming president.

VISIT — Romania’s president elect, Klaus Iohannis, will pay a private visit to the US from December 4th to 10th. After the November elections, Washington congratulated him for his victory and expressed the American authorities’ wish that the relations between the two countries should remain “strong”, Bucharest being considered “an important strategic partner”. The American vice-president Joe Biden also congratulated Klaus Iohannis for his victory on the phone, pointing out that the massive vote turnout was a sign of a strong and healthy democracy. Last week Klaus Iohannis paid a visit to the ex-Soviet Republic of Moldova where he met with President Nicolae Timofti.

VISA WAIVER — The Romanian Foreign Ministry has hailed the announcement of the American authorities regarding a drop in the refusal rate of visa applications filed by the Romanian citizens for the first time under the 10% threshold in the 2013- 2014 fiscal year. According to a Romanian Foreign Ministry communiqué these developments consolidate the ascending trend reported in the 2010- 2014 period. Also the Romanian Foreign Ministry officials expressed hope that this trend would be maintained next year as well, as it is relevant for the continuous progress registered by Romania in terms of compliance with the criteria required for inclusion in the Visa Waiver program, which eliminates visas for the citizens who want to travel to the US.