September 14, 2018 UPDATE
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Newsroom, 14.09.2018, 19:32
SUMMIT The European Commission
president, Jean-Claude Juncker, will for the first time participate in the
Three Seas Initiative Summit due in Bucharest over Monday and Tuesday, the
European Commission representation in Bucharest announced on Friday. According
to the same sources, president Juncker, who will be accompanied by the European
Commissioner for Regional Development Corina Cretu, is expected to deliver a
speech during the summit. On the sidelines of the meeting, the first edition of
the Three Seas Initiative Business Forum will be taking place under the
patronage of Romanian president Klaus Iohannis. The initiative is an informal
political platform at presidential level, which brings together the 12 EU
members between the Baltic Sea, the Adriatic Sea and the Black Sea and is aimed
at developing the economic ties between countries from Central and Southeastern
Europe.
HEARING State Secretary with the Romanian Interior
Ministry, Raed Arafat who is also heading the Department for Emergency
Situation, was heard on Friday at the General Prosecutor’s Office in a file on
the violent events that took place during the anti-government protest on August
10th in Bucharest. State Secretary with the Interior Ministry
Gheorghe Nucu Marin, the head of the Riot Police Special Unit Catalin Paraschiv
and the Subprefect of Bucharest Corneliu Cirstea have also been heard in the
same file. Over 800 complaints from the people who suffered following the riot
police intervention during the protest have been attached to the file.
ASSESSMENT A delegation of
the Venice Commission has ended its meetings in Bucharest with authorities and
representatives of the judiciary aimed at evaluating
the impact of changes brought to the Criminal Code and the Criminal Procedural
Code. On Thursday, experts from the commission were received by President Klaus
Iohannis, and also met Justice Minister Tudorel Toader as well as
representatives from Parliament, in order to prepare a statement to be adopted
next month in plenary session.
STATISTICS On Friday, the
National Institute for Statistics announced that Romania had 4.1 million pigs
on May 1st, 2018, over 357,000 less than on the same date in 2017.
Since last summer, Romania has been swept by an epidemic of African swine
fever, culling 230,000 pigs as a result. The epidemic has hit 207 localities in
12 counties. European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Phil
Hogan said that he is working with the authorities to deal with the situation,
considering that 75% of pigs raised in households in the EU are in Romania.
(translated by bill)
