BUDGET
\nBILL – Parliament today adopted the 2019 budget and social
\nsecurity budget bills. The state budget is based on a 5.5% economic growth, a
\n2.76% deficit and a GDP of some 200 billion euros. More funds this year will go
\nto healthcare, education and investment.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
DEPOSITION -
\nThe former chief of the National Anticorruption Agency (DNA), Laura Codruta
\nKovesi, will be deposed by the special Magistrates’ Investigation department of
\nthe Prosecutor General’s Office in Bucharest. The deposition concerns a case
\nwhere Kovesi is suspected of abuse of office, bribe-taking and perjury. Kovesi
\nyesterday claimed she was innocent, adding that the timing of the subpoena,
\noverlapping with her planned visit to the European Parliament for an interview
\nfor the position of chief European Prosecutor, is no coincidence. European
\nmedia believe Kovesi is favorite to be awarded this position. Kovesi’s indicter
\nis former Social-Democrat MP Sebastian Ghita, himself the subject of several
\ncorruption investigations, who fled to neighboring Serbia. President Klaus
\nIohannis has called on the special department tasked with investigating
\nmagistrates to quickly clarify Kovesi’s indictment. The President claims this
\nspecial unit should not be used as a political investigation tool to intimidate
\nmagistrates and prosecutors. In turn, the right-wing opposition labeled the
\nmove as a political police operation orchestrated by the power. The European
\nCommission announced it is closely monitoring the latest developments, in the
\ncontext of the procedure for selecting the European Chief Prosecutor. The
\nCommission has reiterated its message for Romania concerning the independence
\nof the judiciary, saying it is of paramount importance that the country should
\nhave an independent and professional judiciary. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
GOVERNMENT -
\nThe Romanian Government is today meeting to approve, among other things, a
\ndecree setting the European Parliament election for May 26. Romania will have
\n33 MP seats in the new term, one more than its current number. The Government will
\nalso discuss draft decree for the setup of the National Environmental Health
\nRisks Registry and a memo on approving the de
\nminimis scheme for the program aimed at modernizing and developing spa
\nresorts. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
FLU
\nEPIDEMIC – The number of people who died to the flu virus this
\nseason has reached 127, the National Center for the Surveillance and Control of
\nCommunicable Diseases has announced today. Yesterday health authorities
\nsignaled a slight decrease over the course of last week in the number of
\nreported respiratory infections, owing most likely to the inter-semester break.
\nAccording to data made public by the National Institute for Public Health, last
\nweek some 2,500 confirmed cases of flu and over 103,000 cases of cold were
\nreported overall in Romania. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
SECURITY – As
\na high-ranking representative of Romania, the country currently holding the
\nsix-month rotating presidency of the Council of the European Union, President
\nKlaus Iohannis is tomorrow opening the series of debates as part of the 55th
\nMunich Security Conference, together with Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel
\nand the President of Egypt, the country currently holding the presidency of the
\nAfrican Union. The Romanian official will underline the need to consolidate
\nNATO as a warrantor of Euro-Atlantic Security, as well as the fact that
\ncooperation and coordination between NATO and the EU guarantees security and
\nprosperity. Klaus Iohannis pointed out that the Black Sea region is one of the
\nmost important strategic landmarks of the current security context, and Romania
\nwants to remain a pillar of regional stability and a source of security and
\nstability in NATO and the EU. The Munich Security Conference is a major global
\nforum for the discussion of security policy. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
AGREEMENT -
\nAmbassadors of EU Member States on Friday signed an agreement between the
\nRomanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union and the European
\nParliament regarding a series of revised norms reducing risks in the EU banking
\nsector. Measures to reduce risks will guarantee enough capital in the banking
\nsector to give loans to natural and legal persons in complete safety. At the
\nsame time, taxpayers are protected against any potential difficulties the banks
\nmight experience, Romania’s Finance Minister Eugen Teodorovici said earlier
\ntoday. The agreement will also consolidate the capital requirements imposed on
\nbanks with a view to cutting incentives for excessive risk exposure. The
\nbanking package also contains a framework for the cooperation and information
\nsharing among the various authorities involved in the supervision and
\nresolution of cross-border banking groups.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
TENNIS – Romanian tennis player Simona Halep,
\nworld number 3 and seeded first in the Qatar Total Open in Doha, is today
\nplaying fourth-seed Elina Svitolina of Ukraine in the competition’s
\nsemi-finals. Svitolina leads 4-3 in direct encounters with Halep. In the other
\nsemi-final, Germany’s Angelique Kerber is playing Elise Mertens of Belgium. <\/p>\n
(Translated by V. Palcu)<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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