June 18, 2018 UPDATE

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Newsroom, 18.06.2018, 20:46

VISIT Romania is a powerful symbol of Western freedom on the Eastern
frontier, which proves the country’s development in the region and its becoming
a very important geopolitical point, the US Assistant Secretary Wess Mitchell
said in Bucharest on Monday. In an address at the Bucharest University the US
official added that Romania’s progress in combating corruption was astounding
and he encouraged the country to continue on this path. According to the US
Department of State, during his visit in Romania Wess Mitchell will be seeing
high-ranking Romanian officials and independent analysts on regional security
and economic cooperation. On Tuesday the US official will be attending the
sixth meeting of the US-Romania Strategic Partnership Dialogue. Bucharest has
been the first leg of a European tour, which will also take the US official to
Zagreb, Prague and Brussels.

MEETING Romania’s president Klaus
Iohannis on Tuesday will be meeting the ambassadors of the EU countries
accredited to Bucharest. The meeting is part of an event staged by Bulgaria’s
embassy, a country which is presently holding the EU rotating presidency.
During the event, the Romanian president will be talking about the
consolidation of democracy and the rule of law as essential elements for Romania’s
future progress, a communiqué issued by the presidential administration says.
According to the same sources, talks will also focus on aspects related to the
main topics on the agenda of the European Council meeting over June 28th
and 29th, such as migration, the EU security, the domestic market,
the Union’s future budget for the period 2021-2027 and well as its foreign
relations. Romania’s taking over the EU’s rotating presidency in 2019 will also
be tackled.

MOTION Senators in Bucharest
on Monday rejected a simple motion filed by the right-wing opposition to
dismiss Minister of the Economy Daniel Andrusca on grounds of gross
incompetence. In the motion, the opposition Liberals and the Save Romania Union
had called for his resignation deeming his performance catastrophic. According
to them, the laws for payments on the use of mines and mineral water were
blocked in spite of being part of the governing platform. At the same time, the
Liberals have announced that, by the end of the week, they would file a censure
motion against the coalition government led by Viorica Dancila.

INVESTIGATION Romanian
prosecutors are holding interviews in the Colectiv case surrounding the
Bucharest club that burned down during a concert in late 2015. A fire broke out
inside, leaving 64 dead and over 100 injured. The investigation comes after
several criminal lawsuits were filed by parents and victims against the way in
which the authorities reacted to the incident. The three owners of the club
were prosecuted for second degree murder, causing injury, and violating the
work safety and public health regulations. Also under prosecution are the
owners of the company that provided the fireworks that caused the fire, one
employee, and two legal persons. The tragedy sparked protests against the
corruption in public administration.

(translated by bill)