January 22, 2024 UPDATE

A roundup of local and international news.

Newsroom, 22.01.2024, 19:50

CELEBRATION – Preparations are being made in Romanias cities for the celebration of the Union of the Romanian Principalities. On Wednesday, January 24, military and religious ceremonies, shows, exhibitions, visits to museums and other cultural institutions will be organized. In Focşani, in the southeast, the 165th anniversary of the Union will be marked with artistic moments, a parade of the Detachment of Honor and the traditional Union Circle Dance in the citys Central Square. In Iasi, in the northeast, there will be a ceremony at the statue of ruler Alexandru Ioan Cuza and a parade with the participation of over 300 soldiers. In Bucharest, the Cotroceni National Museum will be open to the public free of charge, and at the Romanian Athenaeum, the “George Enescu” Philharmonic Orchestra will hold a concert for students. In January 1859, Alexandru Ioan Cuza was elected ruler of both Moldavia and Wallachia, and, under the Constitution of 1866, the United Principalities started to officially be called Romania.

AGRICULTURE – The Romanian Minister of Agriculture, Florin Barbu, said that on Tuesday, in Brussels, he could ask for the resignation of the European Commissioner for Agriculture, Janusz Wojciechowski. He said that the complaints stem from a series of exemptions from environmental standards aimed at crop rotation and from the condition to leave 4% of the farms surface uncultivated. These are exemptions for which Romania wants an extension. Barbu said that he could ask the European official to resign because he did not respect the vote expressed by 15 states, including Germany and France, regarding the mentioned exemptions. Also, the Romanian minister said that it would be the first time in the Council of Ministers when a state, through a representative, would request the resignation of the European Commissioner for agriculture.

VISIT – The Romanian Prime Minister, Marcel Ciolacu, said that it is time for relations between Romania and Vietnam to move to the next level, after almost seven and a half decades since the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries. After the discussions in Bucharest with his Vietnamese counterpart, Pham Minh Chinh, Ciolacu pointed out that Romania was one of the main promoters of the development of Vietnams relations with the European Union and stated that he wanted Romania to become the main partner of that country in terms of its commercial access on the European market. He also proposed to his Vietnamese counterpart a partnership aimed at promoting medicines produced in Romania in the Southeast Asian area. For his part, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh emphasized his countrys interest in developing partnerships in fields such as science, technology, innovation, agriculture. The head of the Hanoi government will be received by President Klaus Iohannis.

SENATE – In Bucharest, the Senate was convened, Monday, in an extraordinary session to adopt the emergency ordinances recently issued by the Government, in the context of the farmers and transporters protests. There are several normative acts, including one on the excise duty on diesel fuel, and another modifying regulations in the field of road transport. The emergency ordinances were approved by the executive during the parliamentary recess and, according to the Constitution, Parliament must be convened within fiveZ days to turn them into laws. On the other hand, the first day of the three-day rally authorized by the Capital City Hall in front of the Parliament building was, on Sunday, a failure. Only a few people came and it was not about farmers or transporters. The protest continues, however, near the capital and across the country. The demands of farmers and transporters remain the same, from the reduction of the mandatory insurance fees and the recovery of a percentage of the excise duty on fuels, to fiscal fairness and the shortening of border crossing times.

IMF – An IMF mission will come to Bucharest next week, approximately four months after the previous visit, to analyze the latest economic and financial developments. According to a press release, the institution estimates an economic growth of 2.3% for Romania this year and a budget deficit of 6% of the GDP. The IMF recommends authorities in Bucharest to implement additional reforms, of some two percent of the GDP. At the end of the previous visit, the head of the mission for Romania, Kees Martijn, said that the fiscal package adopted by the government was a step in the right direction, but other reforms were needed, especially regarding taxes, to increase revenues, efficiency and fairness. (EE)