CONSULTATIONS – President Klaus Iohannis is today consulting
\nwith representatives of civil society regarding the justice referendum. The
\nPresident last week said he was almost determined to call a referendum
\ncoinciding with the European Parliament election of May 26. The president’s
\nannouncement followed the Constitutional Court’s ruling sanctioning a
\nreferendum on the same day as the European Parliament election. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
MEETING – Romania’s Prime Minister Viorica Dancila met
\nwith US Secretary of Trade Wilbur Ross during her visit to the United States of
\nAmerica. On this occasion, Dancila highlighted the importance of consolidating
\neconomic cooperation as part of the Strategic Partnership between the two
\nstates. According to a Government release made public today, Viorica Dancila
\npresented the measures the Government has taken to ensure an appealing business
\nsector by increasing the budget of investment in key fields, simplifying the
\nlegislation on public-private partnership as well as awarding tax benefits to
\ncompanies carrying out investment with a major economic impact. During her
\nvisit talks focused on the achievements reported so far by the Romanian
\nPresidency of the Council of the EU on several files of major importance for
\nthe development of the business sector, such as energy, digitization and
\nfinance. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
YOUTH -
\nThe European Union Youth Conference kicks off today in Bucharest, organized by
\nthe Romanian Presidency of the Council of the European Union. The main topics
\non the three-day agenda of the conference are the integration of young people
\non the labour market and improving dialogue between the youth and the
\nauthorities. Taking part are some 250 representatives of young people and line
\nministers from Member States. Also represented are states in the Eastern
\nPartnership and the West Balkans, European and international bodies in the
\nfield of youth and labour. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
BREXIT – British MPs on Monday evening voted in favour
\nof taking control of the UK’s scheduled withdrawal from the community bloc. The
\nmove is unprecedented, aimed at offering MPs the possibility to choose a
\nsolution to overcome the Brexit deadlock. MPs on Wednesday will vote a series
\nof motions to decide whether or not they support the various Brexit scenarios,
\nwhich include the organization of a new referendum, a no-deal Brexit or
\nrevoking Article 50. We recall Parliament has twice rejected Prime Minister
\nTheresa May’s negotiated agreement with the EU. At the summit organized last
\nweek in Brussels, EU leaders accepted a postponement of Brexit, originally
\nslated for March 29, and gave the UK two deadlines. In the first scenario, if
\nParliament finally approves the original Brexit agreement, the deadline for
\nleaving the EU will be May 22. In the second scenario, if the agreement falls
\nthrough, the deadline for Brexit will be April 12, during which time London is
\nexpected to choose the direction in which it is headed. Meanwhile, Brussels
\nannounced it has concluded its ‘no-deal’ preparations. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
EU-CHINA -
\nGermany’s chancellor Angela Merkel, French President Emanuel Macron and
\nEuropean Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker are today holding talks in Paris
\nwith Chinese President Xi Jinping about future relations between Europe and
\nChina. The Chinese President is on a tour of Europe to gather support for his
\nproject The New Silk Road, aimed at linking China to Europe by means of a
\nthousand-billion-dollar investment by 2030. Several EU states have signed
\nprotocols expressing their desire to join the project, and last week Europe’s
\nthird-largest economy, Italy, currently facing severe economic imbalances, became
\nthe first G7 country to sing. European Commission representatives have called
\nfor the immediate establishment of a joint strategy, concerned with Chinese
\ninvestment in key sectors in Member States, such as electricity grids,
\nhigh-speed rail networks and port infrastructure. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
FOOTBALL – Romania’s national football team is today playing the
\nFaeroe Islands at home in Group F of the 2020 European Championship
\npreliminaries. Romania on Saturday lost 2-1 to Sweden away from home. The group
\nalso includes Spain, Norway, Malta. The first two teams will advance to the
\nchampionship. On Monday, Romania’s Under-21 team defeated Denmark 1-nil in a
\nfriendly game played in Spain. Our under-21 team will play in the 2019 European
\nChampionships hosted by Italy and San Marino in Group C, alongside England,
\nFrance and Croatia. <\/p>\n
<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
TENNIS – Romanian tennis player world no. 3 Simona Halep has qualified in
\nthe quarterfinals of the Miami Open in the US, a tournament with total prizes
\nof some 9 million dollars. The second-see ousted Venus Williams of the United
\nStates (43 WTA) in straight sets, 6-3, 6-3. Halep will next take on 18th-seed
\nQiang Wang of China. <\/p>\n
(translated by V. Palcu)<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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