October 14, 2016 UPDATE

President Klaus Iohannis approves National Anti-Corruption Directorate request to prosecute former deputy PM and interior minister Gabriel Oprea for manslaughter.

Newsroom, 14.10.2016, 12:15

Prosecution. Romania’s President
Klaus Iohannis on Friday approved the National
Anti-Corruption Directorate’s request to start prosecution against the former
deputy prime minister and interior minister, Gabriel Oprea, for manslaughter. The request was submitted two days ago,
when Oprea’s term as Senator came to an end following his resignation on
October 1. Under Romanian law, the start of prosecution against people who
serve or have served in the government for acts committed during their terms in
office, and who were notMPs at the time of the notification, is
conditioned by the president’s approval. Policeman Bogdan Gigina died last year
in a motorcycle accident while escorting the then interior minister Gabriel
Oprea. The latter was reportedly on a private trip and consequently was not
entitled to official police escort.

EU-ASEAN. Romania’s foreign minister Lazar Comanescu
expressed condolences to the Thai authorities following the death of King Bhumibol Adulyadej. During his long reign, the monarch has
been appreciated internationally for his important role in promoting the
modernisation and sustainable development of the Kingdom of Thailand, writes a
foreign ministry release. Minister Comanescu heads the Romanian delegation at
the 21st EU-ASEAN meeting in Bangkok. Talks focus on the latest
developments on Europe’s borders, the Middle East and North Africa, the issue
of migration and ways to combat international terrorism. Comanescu on Tuesday
began an Asian tour that also took him to Indonesia, where he had talks with
his counterpart Retno L.P. Marsudi about boosting bilateral dialogue in
the political, economic and commercial areas.

Migrants. The
border police in Giurgiu, southern Romania, on Friday found seven Turkish and
two Syrian nationals aged between 16 and 51 hidden in a truck and planning to
cross the border into Romania illegally. Under a Romanian-Bulgarian protocol, the migrants have been taken
over by the Bulgarian border police for investigation. In recent weeks, the
Romanian authorities have taken additional measures to tighten security at its
southern and western borders after several small groups of migrants tried to
cross the border into Romania illegally.

Magurele laser. Investment in the laser in Magurele,
southern Romania, can generate over 600 million euros in turnover and can
create about 6-7,000 jobs, Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos said on Friday. Ciolos
also attended a conference on development entitled Laser Valley-Land of Lights.
He explained the meeting was aimed at motivating and involving, besides the government
and research institutions, the local public authorities and the business
environment. The Prime Minister insisted on the need to connect, through
infrastructure, the village of Magurele to Bucharest and the Henri Coanda
airport. During a visit to Romania on Tuesday, the European Commissioner for
development, science and innovation Carlos Moedas called for a better promotion
of the laser project in Magurele.

EU. EU interior
ministers meeting in Luxembourg as part of the Justice and Home Affairs Council
have given the green light to a new type of travel document aimed at easing the
repatriation of illegal immigrants from Europe. The decision has been made
because the process of returning migrants has been hindered by the absence of
travel documents. Another issue on the council’s agenda was the implementation
of regulations for the new FRONTEX – the European Border and Coast Guard
Agency. On this occasion, the Interior Ministry in Bucharest, Dragos Tudorache,
has underlined the importance of setting up the new agency, to which Romania is
to contribute 75 border police officers, as part of the agency’s rapid
intervention team.

Republic of Moldova
elections. The leader of the Solidarity and Action Party Maia Sandu will run on
behalf of the pro-European right in the presidential elections in the Republic
of Moldova, an ex-soviet state with a majority Romanian-speaking population.
Both the Liberal-Democratic Party and the former NGO turned-party, Dignity and
Truth said they would a single candidate, the former Education Minister Maia
Sandu. The first round of presidential ballot is due on October 30th,
while the second is on November 13th. This is the first time in the
last 20 years that the country’s president, who has so far been elected by
Parliament, will be elected through the citizens’ direct vote. (Translated by: D. Bilt & C. Mateescu)