June 25, 2024
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Newsroom, 25.06.2024, 13:55
ELECTION The ruling coalition made up of the Social Democratic Party and the National Liberal Party is to make a decision today on the date of the presidential election. The two parties are considering 2 dates for the first election round, September 15th or 29th. The government has until early July to pass an emergency order on the calendar of the presidential election, if the vote is to be held in September. The Liberals insist however that the election should be organized towards the end of the year, although they had initially agreed with a date in September. They argue that holding the election in September would disrupt the start of the new school year, and the campaign would overlap the holiday season. The Social Democrats, on the other hand, rule out any change in the agreed calendar. The 2 ruling parties must also decide whether to have separate candidates for the presidential post. On June 9th, they had a common candidate list for the European Parliament election, but had separate candidates in the local elections.
FOREIGN AFFAIRS The Romanian foreign minister Luminiţa Odobescu took part on Monday in the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Luxembourg. On this occasion, Mrs. Odobescu highlighted the importance of stepped-up military support for Ukraine and mentioned the decision of Romania’s Supreme Defence Council to transfer a Patriot system to Ukraine.
FUNDING On Monday Romania received close to EUR 1.1 bln from the European Union for projects in the energy sector, particularly for renewable energy production. According to an EU news release, Romania and 9 other countries received total funding of EUR 3 bln, intended for 39 programmes. The largest amount was given to Romania, followed by the Czech Republic (EUR 835 mln) and Poland (EUR 700 mln).
ACCESSION The ex-Soviet republics of Moldova and Ukraine today begin their official EU accession negotiations. The first talks are to be held in Luxembourg, and during this process Chişinău and Kyiv must align their national legislation to the bloc’s regulations. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent in Brussels, since their recognition as candidate countries, the two states have made general adjustments in key areas, proving their willingness to adapt to the EU legislation. Beginning with these inter-governmental conferences, Ukraine’s and Moldova’s progress in the implementation of relevant reforms will be assessed separately. Analysts believe this could be an advantage for Moldova, which according to the European Commission has made better progress than Ukraine so far.
FORUM The Romanian interior minister Cătălin Predoiu takes part on June 25 – 27 in the Salzburg Forum Ministerial Conference in Laxenburg, Austria. According to the interior ministry, the event focuses on current and future challenges in the field of security and migration, including security and migration challenges for the EU in 2024 – 2029, security along the Danube in the context of digitization, as well as migration and migrant smuggling.
THEATRE The Performing Arts Market opened today in Sibiu (central Romania) as part of the famous Sibiu International Theatre Festival. Currently in its 27th edition, the Performing Arts Market has, this year as well, face-to-face, hybrid and online components. More than 80 officials for cultural organisations and institutions in over 30 countries convene in Sibiu to establish contacts and implement joint projects. The Festival founder and president, Constantin Chiriac, says this is the only performing arts market in Romania and in Eastern and Central Europe.
FOOTBALL In the European Football Championship hosted by Germany, the last matches in Group D and C are scheduled for tonight. In Group D, the Netherlands take on Austria and France play Poland, while in Group C, England plays against Slovenia, and Denmark against Serbia. Romania concludes its Group E matches on Wednesday in Frankfurt, with a game against Slovakia. In the same group, Belgium is scheduled to play against Ukraine. All 4 teams in the group have 3 points each, with Romania still first-placed in the group thanks to a better goal difference. A draw against Slovakia is enough for the team to move up into the eighth-finals. (AMP)
