September 16, 2015
Click here for a roundup of domestic and international news
Bogdan Matei, 16.09.2015, 12:00
The George Enescu International Festival, one of Europes most prestigious classical music festivals is well under way in Bucharest and in other cultural centres across the country. For the first time ever, in the ongoing edition of the festival, which is the 22nd, a performance tailored for children and youngsters, “Munchhausen – the Master of Lies will be presented today. The show is a production of the Comic Opera for Children. It was composed by Dan Dediu and stage-directed by Cristian Mihailescu. Yesterday, the famous violinist David Garrett gave a concert in Bucharest, being accompanied by the Monte Carlo Philharmonic, conducted by Gianluigi Gelmetti. Garrett performed George Enescus Ballad for violin and orchestra, a work he also took on concert stages worldwide.
Romanias president Klaus Johannis today in front of the Parliaments joint chambers has stated he wanted the Romanian Parliament to be strong and reliable for the Romanians. Johannis specified that, in order for the objective to be fulfilled, a quality legislation was required as well as functional relationships with the other institutions of the state. Romanias president pointed to the flaws of the legislative systems quality and coherence, stating that 80 per cent of the Romanian bemoaned the fact that the laws were clumsy. Johannis criticized the repeated changes of some of the key laws, such as the Fiscal Code, the Education Law or the law on the reform of the healthcare system, delivering a pointed warning over the fact that the way laws change has a negative impact on the efficiency of the public systems, eventually undermining the confidence in the countrys Parliament. Klaus Johannis pleaded for a stable, coherent and predictable legislation, also launching a national debate on education. As regards the refugees crisis, Klaus Johannis stated Romania fully supported the countries hit by the crisis and, to that effect, respected human rights in the course of action it has been taking. Johannis pleaded for a realistic approach, based on dialogue and consultations with the EU countries, also openly opposing a bureaucratic approach. Romanias president also stated the next steps Romania will be taking in the refugees crisis would be agreed upon in this coming Thursdays meeting of the Countrys Supreme Defence Council.
150 migrants last night crossed the border to Croatia coming from Serbia, Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic has announced today. Milanovic stated his country was prepared to receive the refugees, who are keen on reaching Germany and the Nordic countries. They are the first migrants to have used that alternative route, given that Hungary closed its borders with Serbia. Meanwhile the flow of migrants trying to reach Austria from Hungary almost stopped, since the new anti-migrants legislation Budapest has been enforced. The number of refugees has decreased significantly, reaching a couple of hundred migrants from almost 9,400, which is an all-time high reported for this past Monday, Reuters has quoted Hungarian police as saying.
The “Histria 2015 military exercise got underway in several firing grounds across Romania. Taking part in the exercise are around 7,000 employees of the countrys defence, public order and national security institutions. For the first time ever today, in a firing ground in Arad County in the west, live rounds sessions will be performed, with Europe-based US marines military taking part in the exercise. Underlying the joint military undertaking was a complex scenario, tailored for todays security environment, so that Romanian military can accomplish their missions under war conditions or in crisis situations.
The European Commission has decided to resume subsidies to Romania as part of two programs, one dedicated to economic competitiveness and another for the environment, both suspended in late April. Around 120 million Euros will be provided to the Romanian authorities as part of this arrangement. Corina Cretu, European commissioner for regional policy, said that she appreciated the efforts made by the Romanian authorities to improve management and control systems in the two programs. The European Commission announced in April 2015 that it had found indicators of fraud in the management of the two programs.
Romanias national rugby team will today be travelling to England, to play their scheduled World Cup fixtures. Romania will be joining France and Ireland in Group D, as well as Canada and Italy, in the competition that kick-starts on Friday. Also known as the Oak Leaf Knights, the Romanian rugby players have taken part in all the seven previous editions of the World Cup, yet they failed to go past the competitions group stage.
