July 1, 2016
For a roundup of domestic and international news, click here.
Newsroom, 01.07.2016, 12:00
EU PRESIDENCY – Slovakia is today taking over the six-month rotating presidency of the European Union from the Netherlands, against fears sparked by the Brexit vote. Prime Minister Robert Fico has warned that the future of a Union with 27 member states cannot be decided by the few, referring to meetings of some Western officials immediately after the referendum in the United Kingdom. The Slovakian official said the EU would have to redefine its underperforming policies, especially those referring to migration. Romania and Bulgarias accession to the Schengen Area is one of the priorities of Slovakias term in office, according to Radio Romanias Brussels correspondent. Slovakia will host an informal EU summit in September, the first to be organised outside Brussels since 2000.
TALKS – Romanias President Klaus Iohannis on Monday has invited Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos and National Bank Governor Mugur Isarescu, as well as the leaders of parliamentary parties, to a new round of talks in the wake of the Brexit vote. Britains decision to leave the European Union has had less influence on financial markets in Romania than on those in other states in the region, but this doesnt mean the impact wont be more serious in the future, National Bank Governor Mugur Isarescu has said. The Romanian official pointed out that the result of the referendum has fuelled uncertainty on international markets.
ROMANIA AND NATO – Romania is a trusted ally of NATO and remains a pillar of security and stability in the region, Romanias president Klaus Iohannis has said while attending the inauguration ceremony for NATOs two command centres in Bucharest. Klaus Iohannis explained that NATOs command structures in Romania have a major role as part of collective efforts to improve the Alliances capability of successfully responding to current and future threats. The president also referred to the recent inauguration of the anti-ballistic defence facility in Deveselu, recalling that Romania has increased its defence budget and will do so up to 2% of its GDP by 2017. The Multinational South-East Division Command in Bucharest has joined other five NATO units on its eastern flank in Bulgaria, Poland, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. At the 2014 NATO Summit in Wales NATO decided to set up these command centres as a response to Russias ingressions in Ukraine. The event in Bucharest is held one week ahead of the NATO Summit in Warsaw.
BOMB ATTACK – The three men involved in the bomb attack at Ataturk Airport in Istanbul, which killed 44 people and wounded over 250, were all from the former Soviet Union, Turkish sources have announced. One man was from the Northern Caucasus, while the others were from Kazakhstan and Kirgizstan. Turkish officials say that most of the existing data point to the involvement of the Islamic State terrorist cell. The organisation has not claimed the attack, but this is true of other similar attacks in Turkey. The triple bomb attack on Tuesday is the fourth and most serious in Istanbul this year. Turkish Prime Minister Binali Yildirim has announced the authorities would increase security forces in all airports.
WIMBLEDON – Romanian tennis player Simona Halep, ranked 5th in WTA standings, is today playing Kiki Bertens of the Netherlands, 28th WTA, in the third round at Wimbledon, the third Grand Slam tournament of the year. On Thursday, in the second round, Halep trounced Francesca Schiavone of Italy, 6-1, 6-1. Also in the third round, Monica Niculescu, 47th WTA, is playing Timea Bacsinszky of Switzerland, 11th WTA, after on Thursday she defeated Aleksandra Krunic of Serbia, 6-1, 6-4. The Wimbledon tournament has been disrupted by the heavy rain this week.
EURO 2016 – The national football teams of Belgium and Wales are today playing in the second quarterfinal at the European Football Championship in France. In the first match on Thursday, Portugal knocked out Poland at the penalty shootout. Portugal will be playing the winner of todays match. On Saturday, former world champions Italy and Germany are pitted against each other. The host country France is playing Iceland on Sunday. Romania was knocked out in the group phase after grabbing 1 point in three matches.
COCAINE – A record high quantity of 2,5 tonnes of cocaine, worth an estimated 625 million euros, was seized by the border police from a container in the port of Constanta, south-eastern Romania. The ship carrying the cocaine was coming from South America. The drugs were supposed to reach European markets. Investigators have detained five people, all foreign nationals, in this case.
(Translated by V. Palcu)
