France, a major partner for Romania
Economy was the top point on the agenda of Dacian Cioloss visit to Paris.
Roxana Vasile, 22.01.2016, 14:28
Signed in 2008 in Bucharest, the Romanian-French Strategic Partnership, the first France ever signed with an East-European country had long been a dead letter. It took a great deal of political will on both sides to boost cooperation between the two countries. Additionally, Romanian-French relations were marred by the negative image of Romanians settled in the Hexagon, often manipulated by the media or used for political purposes.
Romania is bound to France by a historic friendship, though. The two countries share common objectives, while the Romanian community in France is, to a large extent, well integrated and extremely dynamic, contributing to the prosperity of its adoptive country. In this context, the first official visit to Paris of Prime Minister Dacian Ciolos, a Francophone and Francophile technocrat, was aimed at adding new bricks on an already solid foundation, consisting mainly of a very close political and economic cooperation, marked by the solid presence in Romania of large industrial groups operating in such fields as car manufacturing, aeronautics or public services.
After the difficult reforms implemented right after the economic crisis of 2009-2011, Romania had an annual economic growth of 3.4 — 3.5% last year, and it is expected to have a growth rate of 4% this year. Consequently, having one of the largest growth rates at EU level, Prime Minister Ciolos has assured French SMEs there is a good potential for investment in the Romanian food or energy sectors.
At the same time, Dacian Ciolos expressed an interest in maintaining and stepping up cooperation in such fields as infrastructure, agriculture, as well as in developing and capitalizing on the high-power laser located near Bucharest, the first in Europe and the second largest in the world. Romania is probably the only country in Central and Eastern Europe that still has nationalist, radical parties with unpredictable reactions to political decisions or economic policies.
Romania is also an outlet for European community products and has reported major progress from an administrative, legislative and fiscal point of view. Last year the new Fiscal Code was passed, while the VAT was slashed from 24% to 20% early this year. In order to fully capitalize on its relations with France and to draw more foreign capital, the current Government wants to have a pro-active strategy with France, particularly in what regards two-way trade. At the same time there are sectors where Romania has improved its export potential, and which might help improve Romania’s presence in France.
