July 17, 2014
A roundup of domestic and international news.
România Internațional, 17.07.2014, 12:02
Romania’s candidate for a seat of European commissioner, Dacian Ciolos, is welcome to be part of the new European Commission, Romanian President Traian Basescu said on Wednesday in Brussels, where he attended a special meeting of the European Council. President Basescu has stated on a number of occasions that Romania wants to retain the position of commissioner for agriculture, and its current holder, Dacian Ciolos. At the end of the meeting in Brussels, Herman van Rompuy, President of the European Council, concluded on the need for further consultations to decide on names for EU top positions. EU leaders decided to meet again on 30 August to further discuss the topic.
Romanian Prime Minister Victor Ponta has stated today in Belgrade that he will always be a staunch supporter of Serbia’s EU integration. Currently on a two-day official meeting to Serbia, Ponta held talks with his counterpart Alexandar Vucic about the European path of the neighboring country, the development of some joint infrastructure projects and the situation of the Romanian minority in Serbia. Victor Ponta also met with the country’s president Tomislav Nikolici. Today, on the last day of his visit, the Romanian Prime Minister will discuss with representatives of the Romanian community on the Timoc Valley, in the east of the country. Romania backs Serbia’s bid for the EU and has called on Belgrade to treat the Romanian community according to European norms in the field.
In Romania, political negotiations for the unification of the right wing have been completed today. The leaders of the main opposition parties, the National Liberal Party (PNL) and the Liberal Democratic Party (PDL), respectively, have agreed on the last details of the fusion. The two parties will have one candidate in the presidential elections this fall, whose name will be announced in early August. After the European elections in May, the Liberals and Liberal Democrats in Romania decided to form a large right-wing party. The Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania is meeting today to nominate their candidate for the presidential elections.
President Traian Basescu is today discussing with representatives of the business environment in Romania on the 5% cut in the social security contributions paid by employers. Basescu has said he supports the measure as long as it is sustainable. On Monday, Traian Basescu discussed the matter with Prime Minister Victor Ponta, after having previously announced it would not promulgate the law before the Government explains how it will come up with the money without generating budget imbalances. In the President’s opinion, a 5% decrease in the employers’ social security contribution would only boost taxes and diminish investment.
Four NATO military ships have today started an exercise in the Black Sea port of Constanta, with two Romanian mine sweepers and one fregate. The allied ships, two of Italy, one of Turkey and one of Britain are part of group that tries to combat the treat of naval mines. As NATO member, Romania takes part constantly in exercises palnned by the NATO command.
Ukrainian President Petro Perosenko has today hailed the European Council’s decision to impose new sanctions on Russia, a decision that he sees as important for his country’s sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence. The European Council decided on Wednesday to suspend the financial operations of the European Investment Bank and of the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development with Russia. The measure puts even more pressure on the Kremlin, blamed of fueling the armed conflict in eastern Ukraine. The US has also imposed fresh sanctions on Russia, targeting two important banks and two large energy companies. Russian President Vladimir Putin, has said, in turn, that Washington’s sanctions are likely to affect the Russian-American ties.
