THE WEEK IN REVIEW
August 21-25 2023
Leyla Cheamil, 25.08.2023, 14:52
Fiscal reform by the Bucharest Government
The Bucharest government will assume responsibility in Parliament for the package of laws aimed at reforming the state apparatus, at fiscal balancing measures, and at combating tax evasion. Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu declared that Romania needs a fair tax system for everyone. Budgetary waste, evasion and evasion of cumulative taxes are the brakes that hold Romania’s development in place – said the prime minister, who added that the discussions over the last few weeks have clearly shown that the country needs deep reforms. On the other hand, finance ministry employees organized, on Thursday, new spontaneous protests in several cities in the country, only two days after the warning strike. Trade unionists from the Fiscal Administration request the preservation of jobs and wages, and their special status. They are dissatisfied with the measures proposed by the Executive to reduce budget expenses, given that they could affect over 22,000 people in the system.
Romania supports Ukraine
The President of Romania, Klaus Iohannis, sent, on Thursday, a congratulatory letter to his counterpart from Kiev, Volodymyr Zelenskyy, on the anniversary of Ukraine’s Independence Day. According to the presidential administration, the head of state expressed his appreciation for the valiance shown by the Ukrainian people in defending independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity in the face of Russian aggression. Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu also conveyed, in his own message to the Ukrainian neighbors, his best thoughts and full support from Romania for regaining peace and freedom. We will be with Ukraine and the Ukrainian people until victory and the restoration of territorial integrity is achieved, and even further, in the process of rebuilding the country, assured the Romanian official. In an online statement, within the third Summit of the Crimean International Platform, the Romanian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Luminița Odobescu, stated that Bucharest will continue to support Ukraine in its courageous struggle to fully recover its territorial integrity. The recent reckless attacks on the Ukrainian ports on the Danube, very close to the border with Romania, show, once again, Russia’s desire to amplify this conflict, said Luminița Odobescu. She also highlighted that Bucharest stood with the neighboring country from the first day of the war, and will continue to do so, until what she called the final victory.
The Romanian Minister of the Interior, Cătălin Predoiu, met in Vienna with his Austrian counterpart, Gerhard Karner
The Romanian Minister of the Interior, Cătălin Predoiu, declared, on Wednesday, in Vienna, at the end of a meeting with his Austrian counterpart, Gerhard Karner, that the ambition of the ministry he leads is to make Romania a standard for border protection. The Romanian official announced the signing of a Dublin administrative agreement that simplifies asylum procedures. He emphasized that the discussions being held represent a very good start for a building road on all topics of interest. Predoiu also showed that migration is a serious subject, treated as such in Romania. For his part, the Austrian Minister of the Interior declared that the cooperation model agreed with Romania in the field of combating cross-border crime related to migrant trafficking should also be promoted at the European level. According to him, the cross-border collaboration also shows special results within an action carried out by the authorities in Romania, Hungary, and Austria. We recall that Austria is the only country that opposes Romania’s admission to the European Schengen free movement area, although the latter fulfills all the necessary conditions – a fact recognized by the other EU member states and community institutions. The Schengen system, as a whole, does not work, Gerhard Karner reiterated on Wednesday, who also stated that he does not consider that an expansion is opportune at the present time.
Chiefs of the Police from Constanța County were relieved of their duties upon request
The Romanian Minister of the Interior, Cătălin Predoiu, stated that four police chiefs from Constanța county (south-east) were relieved of their duties upon their own request. This follows the road accident in which a 19-year-old young man, who was driving under the influence of several drugs, killed two people and injured three. The driver had been stopped in traffic by the police three hours before the accident, but they let him go without subjecting him to a test for consumption of controlled substances. Moreover, drugs were found on him, and his unusual behavior in traffic had been reported by a citizen to the emergency line 112. On the other hand, traffic police reacted to the weekend accident in Constanţa county by conducting raids at the national level. The purpose is to detect drivers under the influence of controlled substances or alcoholic beverages. The Judicial Inspection service is also going through the cases in which investigations are carried out for the possession of controlled substances and crimes committed under their influence, all in the context of the tragedy caused by the intoxicated driver.
Romanian firefighters in the fight with the indemnities from Greece
The Romanian firefighters on mission in Greece were requested to take part in a mission to extinguish a fire affecting the dry vegetation near the highway to Alexandroupolis. According to a press release from the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations in Bucharest, more than 50 people were mobilized, with ten fire trucks. The situation of forest fires in Greece is also monitored from space through the European Copernicus satellite program.
Romanian football teams in the Europa Conference League play-offs
Romania’s football champion, Farul Constanţa (south-east), defeated, on Thursday evening at home, Finnish team HJK Helsinki with a score of 2-1, in the first leg of the Europa Conference League football play-off. In the same stage of the competition, also on home ground, the winner of the Romanian Cup, Sepsi Sfântul Gheorghe (center), tied 2-all, with the Norwegian team Bodoe/Glimt. The return games will take place in a week.
