November 10, 2017

Romanian defence minister, Mihai Fifor, has presented in Brussels, at the meeting of the NATO defence ministers, the latest evolutions in setting up the adapted advanced presence in the Black Sea region

Newsroom, 10.11.2017, 14:04

DEFENCE – The Romanian defence minister, Mihai Fifor, has presented in Brussels, at the meeting of the NATO defence ministers, the latest evolutions in setting up the adapted advanced presence in the Black Sea region. The Romanian Defence Ministry writes in a communiqué, all these refer to the Command of the Multinational Brigade in Craiova (southern Romania) which will be turned into a NATO structure, the enhanced presence of the allied naval forces in the Black Sea, air police activities, the allies’ participation in exercises on the Romanian territory. Mihai Fifor has also said Romania is on point of finalizing, alongside Bulgaria and Turkey, the concept of NATO Training Cooperation Initiative. It refers to the joint training of military of the NATO member states riparian to the Black Sea, and the first coordinated action is scheduled for early December.

VISA WAIVER — Romania is one of the few democratic allies which is not already included in the Visa Waiver Program and this should change, US Congressman Dan Lipinski has said, being quoted in a press released recently posted on the web-site of the House of Representatives. He added that Romania’s inclusion in the Visa Waiver program would boost cooperation in the field of security, trade and economic relations and mutual tourism. Dan Lipinski has underlined that “since the Romanian Revolution of 1989 which put an end to the authoritarian communist rule, Romania has become a firm ally of the United States.” The US Congress man said Romania is a real security partner, one of the largest contributors of troops to Afghanistan, who hailed the stationing of US forces to the Black Sea and which is hosting a new multinational NATO brigade.

MINSK – Belarus might become a launching pad for Romania in order to get access to the Eurasian Economic Union, the Prime Minister of Belarus, Andrei Kobyakov, said on Friday during a meeting with Romanian foreign minister, Teodor Melescanu, who is currently on an official visit to Minsk. Kobiakov has mentioned the two sides’ interest in striking partnerships for the joint production of car spare parts, furniture, clothes, textiles, building materials and farm produce. In turn, minister Melescanu has said Romania hails the rapprochment between Belarus and the European Union, with Bucharest having always supported this close dialogue. Frequently deemed by the West as the last dictatorship in Europe, the regime of president Aleksandr Lukashenko, who came to power in 1994, is a loyal ally of Vladimir Putin’s Russia. This year, Belarus lifted mandatory travel visas for EU citizens, a measure described by pundits as an attempt to improve the relationships with Brussels.

GAS STOCKS – Romania has the necessary natural gas stocks for the coming winter, with the gas supply to consumers unfolding in normal conditions, with the observance of technical standards, the Energy Ministry in Bucharest writes in a communiqué. A similar announcement was made by the main domestic natural gas supplier, Romgaz. The two announcements come after the general manager of the national gas distribution company, Transgaz, Ion Sterian, told the relevant parliamentary committee that the gas stock for the coming winter is the smallest in the last four or five years, and consequently Romania will have to increase imports by 30% in order not to cut off consumers, news agencies report.

HANDBALL — The Romanian women’s handball champion, CSM Bucharest, on Saturday will meet away from home the Slovenian team RK Krim Mercator Ljubljana, in its fifth Champions’ League Group A match. With three victories and a defeat, CSM ranks first in the group, which is also made up of Nykobing Falster Handboldklub (Denmark) and Vistal Gdynia (Poland). CSM Bucharest won the Champions’ League in 2016 and is one of the favourites in the current edition of the most powerful inter-club European competition.

FOOTBALL — Romania’s national Under 21 team is meeting this evening on home turf, in Ovidiu (south eastern Romania), the team of Portugal, in a Group 8 match of the EURO 2019 qualifiers. On Tuesday, the Romanians will play, away from home, in Wales. With three victories and a draw following the first four matches, Romania is leading the group, which is also made up of Switzerland, Bosnia and Liechtenstein. On Thursday evening on home turf, in Cluj-Napoca (in the north-west), Romania’s senior team defeated Turkey 2-0 in a friendly match. Turkey is coached by Romanian Mircea Lucescu. This was the third match without defeat for the new Romanian coach, Cosmin Contra, who has been at the helm of the national team since September, replacing the German Christoph Daum, after the team failed to qualify for the World Cup due in Russia next year. Romania will meet the Netherlands on Tuesday in Bucharest, also in a friendly match.