September 5, 2017 UPDATE

For a roundup of domestic and international news, click here.

Newsroom, 05.09.2017, 19:36

RESIGNATION – Defense Minister Adrian Tutuianu on Tuesday tendered his resignation, which Prime Minister Mihai Tudose accepted. Sworn in in late June, Tutuianu motivated his move invoking the lack of communication over the topic of salaries in the military. Previously the Defense Ministry had announced that employees will this month receive only their regular pay, without their meal allowances and their social security contributions and income taxes being wired to the state budget. The Ministrys announcement was denied both by the Prime Minister and the Finance Ministry, which argued there were no difficulties in covering the salary entitlements of Defense Ministry employees. Prime Minister Tudose said Deputy Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu will act as interim Defense Minster pending the nomination of a new minister by the ruling coalition.

ECONOMY – Romanias Prime Minister Mihai Tudose on Tuesday met with representatives of the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank. The IMF delegation was given access to the databases of the National Fiscal Administration Agency so as to draft their new report on Romania. The meeting was held as the Government plans a new budget readjustment and the draft budget for next year. Mihai Tudose said the budget adjustment will be positive and will be made public by the end of the month. Also on Tuesday the National Statistics Institute said Romanias GDP went up by 5,8% in the first six months of the year as compared to the same period of last year.

JUDICIARY – US Ambassador to Bucharest Hans Klemm on Tuesday expressed hope to continue working with the Justice Ministry and the Romanian Government. Klemm had talks with Minister Tudorel Toader about his vision on modifying the laws on the judiciary, arguing that such consultations are normal for a strategic partnership, as the one Romania has with the United States. The meeting was held after the US Embassy last week expressed concern over the independence of Romanias judiciary in the wake of Toaders announced reform of the judiciary. Harshly criticized by the opposition, civil society and the media, the bill stipulates, among other things, that the president of the country is no longer to appoint the chiefs of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate and the Directorate Investigating Organised Crime and Terrorism, that the judicial inspection corps will be subordinated to the Justice Ministry, and that the promotion of magistrates will require more years of service. Earlier this year the Government tried to pass an emergency order amending the criminal codes, which sparked massive street protests across Romania against the power trying to prevent influential people in the political and administrative systems from facing criminal justice.

OECD – Romania’s objective is favoring a coherent, cohesive Europe,
closer to the concerns of its own citizens and more trustworthy at global
level, Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu said on Tuesday at the Strategic Forum
in Bled, Slovenia. The Minister underlined the importance of the EU as a global
actor based on sharing common values and principles of international law, as
well as the need to take on a pragmatic and ambitious approach that responds to
the expectations of EU citizens. On the sidelines of the event Melescanu had
talks with the Secretary General of the Organization for Economic Cooperation
and Development, Angel Gurria, about Romania’s OECD candidacy. Melescanu
outlined Romania’s strengths, with a focus on political determination and
fulfilling technical criteria. Melescanu also met with his Macedonian and Montenegrin
counterparts, Nikola Dimitrov and Aleksandar Andrija Pejović, respectively,
whom he assured of Romania’s support for their countries’ EU accession efforts.

MOLDOVA – Moldovan President Igor Dodon has forbidden the participation of Moldovan military in the Rapid Trident military drill in Ukraine, after previously rejecting the participation of Moldovan soldiers in the Platinum Eagle 17.2 military drill held in Babagad, Romania, a decision criticized by Prime Minister Pavel Filip. The Prime Minister believes the decision does not fit the logic of a commander in chief.

NORTH KOREA – The UN Security Council is this week discussing a resolution in response to North Koreas having conducted a nuclear test at the end of last week, its sixth so far. North Korea said its test of what it described as a hydrogen bomb designed for a long-range missile was a perfect success. The UN Security Council strongly condemned North Korea’s outrageous test, saying it is deliberately undermining regional peace and stability. US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said Monday that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un was begging for war as she urged the UN Security Council to adopt the strongest sanctions possible to stop Pyongyang’s nuclear program. Speaking at a Security Council emergency meeting, Nikki Haley said North Korea’s sixth nuclear test was a clear sign that the time for half measures from the UN had to end. The Council will take a decision on Monday.

FOOTBALL – Romanias national football team was defeated by Montenegro on Monday 1-0 in Podgorica, in Group E of the World Cup qualifiers, losing any chance to qualify to the final tournament in Russia. Romania ranks fourth in the group, after Poland, Denmark and Montenegro. Romanias next fixture against Kazakhstan will be held on home turf in the town of Ploiesti on October 5 while the one against Denmark will be held on November 8th in Copenhagen. The manager of the Romanian national team, the German Christoph Daum, has been strongly criticized for the teams poor results. (Translated by V. Palcu & E. Enache)