July 20, 2017
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Newsroom, 20.07.2017, 14:07
VISIT Romanian Prime Minister Mihai Tudose is paying a visit to the neighboring Republic of Moldova, an ex-soviet Romanian-speaking country. High on his agenda are talks with his Moldovan counterpart Pavel Filip and Parliament speaker Adrian Candu on stepping up bilateral cooperation as well as Bucharest’s support for the European progress of the Republic of Moldova. The Romanian Prime Minister’s agenda doesn’t include talks with Igor Dodon, the Socialist pro-Russian president of the republic. This is Tudose’s second visit abroad since he was sworn in at the end of June. He told the EU leaders in Brussels last week: “Romania has a huge task in assuring the pro-European roadmap for the Republic of Moldova.”
COMPANIES The number of companies with foreign capital set up in Romania rose in the first quarter of this year by 9.34% up to 2,938 as compared to the same period of 2016. In June this year they rose by 13% to reach 532. We recall that 2016 proved to be Romania’s weakest year in the past 18 years in terms of newly-established foreign capital enterprises. The second best year after 1991 was 2007, with 15 suchlike companies registered. The worst year was 1995 with only 34 hundred companies.
HOLIDAY The majority Orthodox believers and the Catholic Christians in Romania are today celebrating Saint Elijah. According to the Bible, prophet Elijah lived 28 hundred years ago and reinstated the faith in Jehovah among the idolatrous Israelites. Elijah didn’t end his life as any other man but was taken to God in a chariot of fire. He is also the saint patron of the Romanian Air Force, which is also marking the day of July 20th through a series of military and religious sermons. According to data released by the Directorate for Personal Records, roughly 130 thousand Romanians are today celebrating their name day.
LAW The ex-soviet Romanian-speaking Republic of Moldova has today seen fresh protests from civil society and opposition parties against a Parliament approval over amending the country’s election system. Under the new law, 50 MPs will be elected on party tickets and 51 others in uninominal constituencies. EU officials have called on Chisinau to comply with the recommendation of the Venice Convention, according to which amending electoral legislation and adopting the uninominal vote for Parliament are inopportune. Experts, quoted by Radio Romania correspondents in Chisinau, say that the introduction of the uninominal system is favouring the big parties, namely the Prime Minister Vlad Filip’s pro-western democrats and the socialists of pro-Moscow presidents Igor Dodon.
FOOTBALL Romanian football side Astra Giurgiu tonight takes on Zira FK of Azerbaijan in a decisive round of the Europa League’s second preliminary leg. Astra won the first match 3-1 and if qualified they would play Ukrainian side FK Oleksandria. In the same competition Universitatea Craiova of Romania will be up against famous Italian side AC Milan, while Dinamo Bucharest takes on strong Spanish eleven Athletico Bilbao. In the Champions League, the new Romanian champions Viitorul Constanta will be playing APOEL Nicosia of Cyprus, while vice-champions FCSB, formerly known as Steaua Bucharest will meet Czech side Viktoria Plzen.
