June 12, 2017
Romanian Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu is today paying an official visit to Zagreb.
Newsroom, 12.06.2017, 13:42
CRASH — A MIG 21 Lancer of the Romanian Air Forces crashed on Monday eight kilometres away from the Mihail Kogalniceanu Airport in Constanta, in south-eastern Romania. The pilot, who managed to eject, is injured but conscious and his condition is stabile. The fighter jet was on a training mission part of the “Thracian Eagle 2017” military drill held jointly with the Bulgarian air forces.
HEARING — The former chief of the Romanian Intelligence Service (SRI), George Maior, currently Romania’s Ambassador to the US, has been herd today by Parliament’s inquiry committee probing into the 2009 presidential elections. Maior has said, among other things, that the institution he headed back in 2009 carried out its mission in keeping with the laws in force. Parliament’s inquiry committee, set up at the initiative of the coalition government, is investigating the unclear circumstances in which in 2009 Traian Basescu won a second term in office as president of Romania, after defeating the then president of the Social Democratic Party Mircea Geoana in the runoff.
PARTIAL ELECTIONS – Partial elections were held in Romania on Sunday, one year after the local elections. New mayors were elected in 49 localities in 32 counties. According to the Permanent Electoral Authority, the turnout was 33%. These elections were necessary because some of the mayors elected last year resigned their posts after becoming MPs following the parliamentary elections at the end of the year, while others received court sentences. The most important posts that had thus become available were those in Craiova and Targu Jiu, both in the south of the country. Find out more about it after the news.
STRIKE — The Federation of Trade Unions in Education has announced on Monday that the legal conditions for an all out strike are not met, which does not mean that teachers are happy with the salary law. The strike was initially scheduled for June 12. The announcement came in the context of one thousand teachers in Bucharest having refused to enter the classrooms during Baccalaureate exams on Monday morning. The Education Ministry has given assurances that the Baccalaureate exams are unfolding in keeping with the schedule. Teachers are unsatisfied with their pay level and the postponement of the 20% increase set initially for July.
FRENCH ELECTIONS – Emmanuel Macrons centrist La Republique En Marche is projected to win a huge majority in the French Parliament after a very good result in Sundays first round of voting. Macron’s party and its Mouvement Démocrate (MoDem) allies won a combined 32.3% of the vote, while the established Les Républicains trailed with 15.8% of the vote. The voter turnout was only 48.7%.
VISIT — Romanian Prime Minister Sorin Grindeanu is today paying an official visit to Zagreb, to meet with Croatian President Kolinda Grabar, PM Andrej Plenkovic and Parlamentului Speaker, Gordan Jandrokovic. The officials will discuss about topics of common interest, such as the future of the EU and cooperation with a view to joining Schengen. During the visit an accord regarding the mutual protection of classified information will be signed as well as a memorandum of understanding regarding the cooperation between the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Romania and the Economic Chamber of Croatia.
CHISINAU — NGOs supported by opposition parties have called the citizens of the Republic of Moldova to a protest against the introduction of the mixed election system that would replace the current system based on party lists. The change, proposed by the Democratic Party and the Socialists’ Party is contested by the opposition, that sees is as favouring political corruption and disadvantaging opposition parties.
(Translated by Elena Enache)
