EUROPEAN COUNCIL – Romanian president
\nKlaus Iohannis on Friday attended the European Council meeting, held in
\nvideoconference format. The main points on the agenda were the 2021-2027
\nmultiannual financial framework and the economic recovery plan. The President
\nsaid, after the meeting, that European leaders have agreed to continue talks on
\nthe two topics, although additional points in the two packages have to be
\ndiscussed and settled. Romania was earmarked \u20ac44 billion in the current
\nfinancial framework. We’re trying to get a considerably higher amount over the
\nnext financial framework, and we are equally fighting to obtain more favorable
\nconditions for their implementation, the President went on to say. The money is expected to go to economic
\ndevelopment, healthcare, road and rail infrastructure, water and sewage,
\neducation and sustainable energy. President Iohannis said the next European
\nCouncil meeting is scheduled for mid-July. According to France Press, EU
\nleaders have called on the EU27 to swiftly reach an agreement on the post-COVID
\neconomic recovery plan, with the aim of pulling the European continent out of a
\nhistoric recession. A bailout plan worth \u20ac750 billion is on the table, and
\ncould represent a major step for Europe, as for the first time the sum will be
\nborrowed on the financial markets.<\/p>\n
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ONLINE FORM – Air passengers
\nentering the country via Henri Coanda airport must file an online form stating
\ntheir epidemiological status. Available as of Friday, the form is aimed at
\nreducing waiting times and boosting the flow of arrivals, with the overall
\npurpose of preventing the SARS CoV2 virus from spreading. The form can be
\naccessed on bucharestairports.ro.<\/p>\n
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PENSIONS – The High Court of
\nCassation and Justice in Bucharest and the Ombudsman have referred a law on the
\nprogressive taxation up to 85% of all special pensions in Romania, endorsed by
\nParliament, to the Constitutional Court. The Court has criticized several
\naspects, such as the fact that its rulings in this matter have been repeatedly
\nignored, the Supreme Council of Magistrates has not been consulted and several
\nprinciples haven’t been observed, such as the proper and equitable taxation and
\nthe independence of judges. There are multiple reasons of unconstitutionality,
\nthe Ombudsman has also pointed out, adding that, under the law, the
\nbeneficiaries of these special pensions are being discriminated against. We
\nrecall that on May 6 Romania’s Constitutional Court turned down a law on
\ncancelling special pensions upon two notifications by the High Court and the Ombudsman. <\/p>\n
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NATO – The Multinational
\nDivision South-East Command will contribute to the deterring and defence
\ncapabilities of NATO’s eastern flank, Romania’s Defence Minister Nicolae Ciuca
\nhas said. His statement came after Parliament in Bucharest on Thursday endorsed
\nthe setting up of this command in Sibiu, central Romania. According to Ciuca,
\nRomania’s initiative has been appreciated by NATO partners and accepted by the
\nallies thus highlighting the strategic importance of the Black Sea for the
\nsecurity of the Euro-Atlantic area and the need for increasing allied military
\npresence in the region. The new military body will have the statute of
\ninternational military command subordinated to an allied command outside the
\nnational structure of command and control.<\/p>\n
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SANCTIONS – EU leaders have
\nagreed to extend economic sanctions on Russia by another six months, reason
\nbeing Russia’s unresolved conflict in Eastern Ukraine and its refusal to
\nimplement the Minsk peace agreements, European Council President Charles Michel
\nhas said. Introduced back in July, 2014, the sanctions target the finance,
\nenergy and defense sectors in Russia, preventing certain Russian banks and
\nbusinesses from accessing EU markets, as well as restricting certain European
\nimports. The sanctions also restrict Russia’s access to certain sensitive
\ntechnologies and services that can be used to explore and produce oil. Romania’s
\nForeign Minister Bogdan Aurescu said Romania does not consider Russia to be an enemy
\nstate, but condemns the country’s previous aggressive behavior. It’s not just
\nRomania’s viewpoint, but a common analysis inside NATO and the EU. The allies are
\nviewing Russia’s actions in the Black Sea region as generating risks, Minister
\nAurescu explained. The Romanian official took part in an online debate
\norganized by the American Center for European Political Analysis, where he
\ndiscussed the possibility of introducing the Russian Federation into the country’s
\nnew National Defense Strategy. <\/p>\n
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(translated by D. Bilt
\n& V. Palcu)<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A roundup of domestic and international news<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":113,"featured_media":75903,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[35547,28997,35328,29000,32920,29669],"coauthors":[],"class_list":["post-104405","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-newsflash","tag-economic-recovery-plan","tag-european-council","tag-nato-command","tag-president-klaus-iohannis","tag-sanctions-on-russia","tag-special-pensions"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n