July 1, 2024
A roundup of local and international news.
Newsroom, 01.07.2024, 13:48
Consultations. Romania’s Social Democrat prime minister Marcel Ciolacu is today holding consultations with the main parties to establish the date of the presidential elections. The talks come amid disagreements on this subject between the parties in the ruling coalition, the Social Democratic Party and the National Liberal Party. The Liberals want the presidential elections to be held no later than November, while the Social Democrats want to hold them in September. Romania saw local and European elections on 9th June, while the parliamentary elections are due in December.
Prices. Excise duties on fuel again went up in Romania from 1st July, with the price of one litre of petrol expected to go up by around 0.43 euros, while that of diesel by around 0.4 euros. Gas prices will also see some changes, with the regulatory body approving an increase of 19% on average in supply prices. The minimum wage goes up to 3,700 lei from 3,300, also from 1st July.
OSCE. Bucharest is hosting the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organisation for Security and Cooperation in Europe, whose general theme is “The Role of the OSCE in the Current Security Architecture: A Parliamentary Perspective”. The 31st meeting of the Parliamentary Assembly is an event of a major geopolitical importance, according to the head of the Romanian Parliament’s delegation to the OSCE, Dan Barna. He added that Romania’s hosting it shows the recognition of its role in the regional context of the war in Ukraine and the European security developments for the OSCE countries. The war waged by Russia against Ukraine is one of the main topics on the agenda of the meeting, Barna also said. The over 250 MPs gathering in Bucharest these days will also discuss economic development, women’s and men’s equal involvement in political life and the involvement of young people in the decision-making process.
EU. Hungary is today taking over the rotating presidency of the European Council, with seven stated priorities, including consolidating competitiveness, combating illegal migration more effectively and bringing the Western Balkans closer to EU entry. The Hungarian presidency is expected to be complicated, as Hungary often holds diverging views from the other EU states on a number of important subjects. Hungary has blocked endeavours to provide military support for Ukraine, has opposed the EU’s enlargement eastwards, to Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova, has unsuccessfully tried to bloc the EU Pact on Migration and is faced with infringement procedures for violating the principles of the rule of law, press agencies note.
France. France’s National Rally led by Jordan Bardella came first in the first round of Sunday’s legislative elections in France, which may pave the way for the far right to power for the first time since WWII, France Presse notes. With 34% of the votes, the National Rally and its allies won more votes than the leftist alliance of the New Popular Front, which got under 30% and president Emmanuel Macron’s party, which won 20% of the votes. The second round will be held on 7th July.
Tennis. Four Romanian tennis players are in action today in the opening round at Wimbledon. Irina Begu is playing China’s Lin Zhu, qualifier Anca Alexia Todoni is playing Serbia’s Olga Danilovich, Sorana Cîrstea is facing Britain’s Sonay Kartal and Jaqueline Cristian is facing Canada’s Bianca Andreescu. On Tuesday, Gabriela Ruse will be playing against the 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina of Kazakhstan, while Ana Bogdan will face Cristina Bucşa of Spain.
