July 14, 2015
A roundup of domestic and international news.
Newsroom, 14.07.2015, 12:15
Romanian President Klaus Iohannis is meeting today, on the last day of his official visit to Spain, the country’s Senate Speaker, Pio Gacia Escuerdo, to discuss collaboration within the European Union and NATO, economic cooperation and the situation of the Romanian community in Spain. On Monday, President Klaus Iohannis met with King Felipe VI in Madrid and had talks with Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.
Iran and six major world powers, namely the US, Russia, China, Britain, France and Germany reached a nuclear deal on Tuesday, after almost two years of negotiations, Reuters reports. Under the deal, sanctions imposed by the United States, European Union and United Nations would be lifted in return for Iran agreeing long-term curbs on a nuclear program that the West has suspected was aimed at creating a nuclear bomb. Western diplomats said under the final agreement, Iran had accepted a “snapback” mechanism, under which some sanctions could be reinstated in 65 days if it violated the deal. A U.N. weapons embargo would remain in place for five years and a ban on buying missile technology would remain for eight years. Israeli Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely called the deal an “historic surrender”.
In Greece, the parliamentary groups of the two ruling parties are analyzing the draft law on the new measures that their country agreed on with the international lenders in exchange for financial aid. The deadline for the bills adoption by the Greek Parliament is Wednesday. Several officials within the Greek ruling coalition, including the PM Tsipras’s Syriza party, have already criticized the deal. At the same time, Greece’s situation will be discussed in Brussels by the 28EU foreign ministers. Previously a Eurogroup meeting was held, but no solution was found for a temporary financial aid that should enable the Greek government finance the country immediately. Under the new bailout package granted to Greece and agreed on by the 19 members of the Eurozone, Athens must meet a tight timetable for enacting unpopular reforms of value added tax, pensions, budget cuts, bankruptcy rules and an EU banking law that could be used to make big depositors take losses.
As many as 15 central and south European countries, Romania included, have agreed to work together to set up the natural gas transport infrastructure and the connection points that are still needed. According to the European Commission, an accord in this respect was signed late last week in Dubrovnik, Croatia, by the energy ministers, that will open the path for closer cooperation among energy markets and contribute to the development of the relevant business environment.
Romania’s football champions, Steaua Bucharest are today playing away from home against AS Trencin of Slovakia in the second preliminary round of the Champions League. A young club, founded in 1992, AS Trencin played its way to the top in Slovakia lately. In the Europa League, in the second preliminary round on Thursday, two other Romanian teams are present, Astra Giurgiu and ASA Tg. Mures, who play against Scottish side Inverness CT and Polish side Legia Warsaw respectively.
