May 30, 2014
News and current affairs from Romania
Roxana Vasile, 30.05.2014, 11:55
An IMF delegation starts on Monday a visit to Bucharest for a third evaluation of the current stand-by loan agreement. Among the topics of the talks will be removing the state monopoly in two key economic sectors, energy and infrastructure. Also under debate will be a possible five percent reduction in social contributions made by employers, as well as stimulus measures for the labor market and tax cuts planned by the Finance Ministry. Under the present stand-by agreement, the IMF and the EC are ready to provide Romania four billion Euros in case of need. Find out more details right after the news.
The Foreign Ministry in Bucharest maintains its recommendation for Romanian citizens, including members of the media, to leave at once Crimea and the eastern Ukrainian regions of Donetsk and Lugansk. This comes against a dramatic deterioration of the security situation in the area. At the same time, Romanians are discouraged from traveling to those areas, as well as a few more in the north-east, south and south-east.
Ukrainian President elect Petro Petroshenko called publicly for retaliation against the pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country who brought down a helicopter carrying 12 troops, among them a general. US State Secretary John Kerry, pointed out that Russia had withdrawn its troops from the border with Ukraine, at the same time denouncing the arrival in eastern Ukraine of pro-Russian Chechen fighters. Ukraine has been attempting for the last two months to quell the separatist uprising in the east.
Moldova’s Foreign Minister, Natalia Gherman, said that Romania is the most honest and effective partner for her country in an interview with Radio Romania. She mentioned the assistance granted by Romania for justice and internal affairs reform, which Moldova needs to join the EU. Natalia Gherman also talked about the 20 million Euro loan granted by Romania to its sister country for education reform and for building the Iasi-Ungheni gas pipeline, connecting Moldova to the European energy network.
