November 27, 2013 UPDATE
A look at some of the main headlines in Romania today.
România Internațional, 27.11.2013, 18:57
China views Romania as an important pillar of cooperation with Eastern Europe and the European Union, the Chinese prime minister Li Keqiang told Parliament in Bucharest. He stood in favour of stronger Romanian-Chinese political ties and taking advantage of the business opportunities provided by the two countries. Also on Wednesday, prime minister Li was received by president Traian Basescu, who said Romania welcomed more Chinese investment in the region. The Chinese prime minister is on an official visit to Romania until Thursday, being accompanied by a large delegation of government officials and business people. Romania has signed a number of cooperation agreements with China, mainly in the field of energy. Also, prime minister Li has attended a meeting of Central and Eastern European prime ministers and an important economic forum hosted by Bucharest.
Healthcare trade unions have called off an all-out strike scheduled for Thursday following the signing of a collective employment agreement. The announcement was made at the end of a second round of talks between trade unions and health minister Eugen Nicolăescu. Previously, the minister said over 1,000 jobs in the sector would be unblocked next year. Unions demanded among others the allocation of 6% of the GDP to the healthcare sector, higher salaries, the unblocking of jobs and the signing of a collective agreement tailored to the sector.
Referring to comments by British prime minister David Cameron about immigration, the European commissioner for employment Laszlo Andor has accused him of an “unfortunate over-reaction”. Andor also told the BBC that Cameron was distorting reality. Earlier, the British prime minister announced plans to restrict the access of EU migrants to unemployment benefits and social housing, amid calls to curb the influx of Romanian and Bulgarian workers when their restrictions on the British employment market are lifted on January 1st.
Romania ranked 12th among the top beneficiaries of European funds in 2012, with nearly 4 billion euros, while its contribution to the EU budget stood at 1.32 billion euros, according to the Financial Report for 2012 released by the European Commission. Poland was the top destination for EU funds, with 15.7 billion euros, followed by Spain and France. Last year, the EU budget earmarked additional funds for fields that contribute to economic growth, new jobs and investments in research and education.
The European Commission has adopted a proposal to eliminate visas for citizens of the Republic of Moldova holding biometric passports who travel to the EU. The European commissioner for home affairs Cecilia Malmström and the commissioner for enlargement and European neighbourhood policy Stefan Füle have hailed the reforms initiated by the pro-European authorities in Chisinau. The Commission’s proposal is to be discussed by the European Parliament and the European Council. In another development, the Moldovan prime minister, Iurie Leanca has reiterated Chisinau’s wish to join the European Union. He said Moldova’s European path would only become irreversible when the country earns the status of EU candidate country. He made these comments ahead of a EU summit in Vilnius where Moldova is expected to initial its association and free trade agreements with the European Union.
