March 25, 2023 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news
Newsroom, 25.03.2023, 19:15
Visit. The European Council President Charles Michel will pay a formal visit to Bucharest on Monday, the Presidential Administration has announced. He will meet with the head of state, Klaus Iohannis, and at the end of their talks, the two officials will hold a press conference. The visit takes place shortly after the meeting in Brussels of the EU heads of state and government, focusing largely on the situation in Ukraine.
Rating. Fitch Ratings has reconfirmed Romanias Long-Term Foreign-Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) at BBB- and changed the outlook from negative to stable, the Ministry of Finance announced on Saturday. This is the first positive change in Romanias rating outlook operated by the agency since April 2020. Fitchs decision represents a signal of confidence in the prospects for economic growth, based on the continuation of government programs and the support of Romanias development opportunities, Prime Minister Nicolae Ciuca said. According to the Ministry of Finance, the decision is supported by the stabilization of the public debt and the implementation of policies aimed at ensuring a gradual fiscal consolidation. Fitch mentions both the economic resilience demonstrated by Romania in 2022, and the political stability that made it possible to address the crisis generated by the war in Ukraine and the energy crisis, says the Ministry of Finance. According to Fitch, Romanias economy will register an increase of 2.3% in 2023 and 3% in 2024, given that the country will benefit from important European funds both from the Multiannual Financial Framework 2021-2027 and from the Recovery and Resilience Mechanism. The main factors that could lead to the improvement of the country rating or the outlook are the firm stabilization of the share of public debt in the GDP in the medium term and the reduction of the fiscal deficit, the Ministry of Finance has also said.
Celebration. The Romanian Police celebrated, on Saturday, 201 years since it was first mentioned in documents. Various special actions and workshops were organized in the country. “Policemen are the ones who ensure safety, protection and are with people in difficult moments, having an important role in the national security system”, Prime Minister Nicolae Ciucă said in a message conveyed on f Romanian Police Day. The Head of the Executive emphasized, at the same time, the need to adapt the Romanian Police to the new forms of danger and criminality in order to respond to the citizens expectations.
Protest. Policemen and military pensioners in Romania protested on Saturday at the headquarters of the Ministry of Interior. Their main claims concern the urgent and full application of the Framework Law on wages, decent wages and the application of the Law on state military pensions, in the form originally voted, to ensure the stability and predictability of this pension system that exists in all the NATO and EU member states. The trade unionists also demand increases in the amount of salaries in payment, higher additional allocations for food and equipment, as well as a higher bonus for neuropsychic overload.
Talks. The Romanian Minister of National Defense, Angel Tîlvăr, discussed with ambassadors from the Nordic countries accredited to Bucharest the security situation generated by the war started by the Russian Federation against Ukraine. The Romanian official conveyed to the diplomatic representatives of Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Sweden and Lithuania that Romania will remain deeply engaged in the development of cooperative relations with their countries. The importance of carrying on the international support for Ukraine was emphasized and Romanias efforts in this regard were highlighted. Angel Tîlvăr reaffirmed the importance of supporting the partners from the Eastern neighborhood of the Alliance, such as the Republic of Moldova (ex-Soviet, predominantly Romanian-speaking). (MI)
