22 June, 2016

German President visits Romania, UK votes on EU membership

Newsroom, 22.06.2016, 00:00

GERMAN VISIT – German President Joachim Gauck, on the final day of his three day visit to Romania, took part in a meeting with business representatives from both countries. On this occasion, Romanian president Klaus Iohannis said that Romania plans to follow an economic model based on innovation and competitiveness. He said the country was committed on the long term to expand economic cooperation in various areas through programs that expand economic cooperation between Romania and Germany, encouraging German investment in Romania. The German official had talks with high officials throughout the visit, and held a talk at the New Europe College and the German Embassy in Bucharest. He also visited the city of Sibiu, which has the largest community of ethnic Germans in Romania. President Gauck praised the Romanian model of inter-ethnic cooperation, thanking the Bucharest authorities for the way the address the needs of the German community in Romania.

PARLIAMENT – Romanian MPs voted today to decriminalize conflict of interest for people who have employed relatives as part of Parliament staff before 2013. According to legal experts, this bill is a self-protection clause. At the same time, they opened a loophole to continue to hire relatives. Late last year, the National Integrity Agency said that they prosecuted 32 present or former MPs for conflicts of interest, with contracts involving such a violation totaling 240,000 Euro.

BREXIT – One day before the referendum in the UK on EU membership, the situation remains tense, even though polls indicate a slight advantage for the pro-European side. Market optimism has pushed the pound higher on Wednesday morning, with financial markets going higher. The referendum was one of the electoral promises made by Conservative PM David Cameron early in 2013. Tomorrow Brits will vote on whether or not they would stay in the EU, after being a member for 43 years. If voters decide to leave the EU, it would be the first time that a country leaves the union.

WEATHER – In Romania, temperatures are still high, with the heat index over the critical threshold of 80 in most places. Weather experts issued a code yellow alert for Bucharest and most areas in the south, south east, and east of the country, with expected temperatures of 37 degrees Celsius. The warning is in effect between June 22 and 24th. Two people have died because of extreme weather over the last few days.

FOOTBALL – EURO 2016 today sees the last group stage fixtures being played. In Group E, Italy take on Ireland while Sweden faces Belgium. In Group F, Iceland are pitted against Austria and Hungary take on Portugal. On Tuesday, Croatia defeated Spain, 2-1, but both teams made headway into the knockout stage, having emerged on top and runner-up position, respectively in Group D. In Group Ds other game, Turkey snatched a 2-nil win over the Czech Republic. Also going through to the knockout stage were France, Switzerland, Germany, Poland, Wales and England.

SANCTIONS – The ambassadors of the 28 EU member states have endorsed keeping in place sanctions against Russia for six more months. The sanctions were issued in 2014 as a result of involvement in Ukraine. EU sources, quoted by AFP, said that an official decision was needed to prolong sanctions until the end of January 2017. These measures are aimed at banks and oil companies, as well as defense industry companies. They have hit hard the Russian economy. In response, Russia banned food imports from the EU. On Tuesday, Ukrainian president Poroshenko spoke in Paris, saying that sanctions were the only measure able to pressure Russia into complying with the Minsk peace agreements aimed at easing tensions in his country’s eastern half.