September 17, 2018 UPDATE
Three Seas Initiative Summit under way in Bucharest, Romanian PM holds talks with EBRD delegation
Newsroom, 17.09.2018, 19:02
Three Seas Initiative — Romania is interested in maintaining a robust and operational trans-Atlantic relation which is vital for the system of values of the western civilization, the Romanian President Klaus Iohannis stated on Monday in Bucharest on the occasion of the Three Seas Initiative Summit. According to President Iohannis a good way to bridge the economic development gap between the old and new EU members is to boost interconnectivity in the region of the three seas, first and foremost in the energy, transport and digital fields. The first edition of the Initiative Business Forum has been held on the sidelines of the event. The President of the European Commission Jean Claude Juncker is for the first time participating in this summit. Three Seas Initiative is a flexible political platform at presidential level that gathers 12 EU member states located between the Baltic, Adriatic and Black Seas.
EBRD — The Romanian PM Viorica Dancila on Monday held talks in Bucharest with a delegation headed by the president of the EBRD Suma Chakrabarti about future cooperation for the modernization of the hospital network in Romania and for funding infrastructure projects. According to a government communiqué, the talks focused on the public-private partnership, the internationalization of Romanian companies, the involvement of the EBRD in structuring and making operational the future Sovereign Fund as well as on the prospects of setting up a Development Bank. So far the EBRD has invested almost 8 billion Euros in Romania, in over 400 projects, the Romanian government reports.
Ambassador — The Foreign Policy Committee in the Romanian Senate sent a letter to the Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu asking him to assess to what extent maintaining George Maior in the position of Romania’s ambassador to the US is still beneficial to Romania’s interests. The speaker of the Senate Calin Popescu Tariceanu said that Maior’s activity as ambassador is not outstanding and criticized him for having made uninspired declarations regarding a recent letter of the former mayor of New York Rudolph Giuliani. Calin Popescu Tariceanu announced his intention to ask the foreign minister to recall George Maior, who actually rejected all accusations brought against him. A former federal prosecutor, Rudolph Giuliani, who is currently one of the lawyers of President Donald Trump, has recently sent the Romanian President a letter in which he denounced certain abuses of the National Anti-Corruption Directorate and expressed concern with the consequences of the secret protocols concluded by several public institutions with the Romanian Intelligence Service. George Maior then said that the letter was the result of the lobby initiated by certain people interested in defending people from Romania with legal problems.
Eurostat — In August Romania reported, for the 7th consecutive month, the highest annual inflation rate within the EU, show data published on Monday by Eurostat. Consumption prices went up in August by 4.7% after in July the annual inflation rate had reached 4.3%. At the EU level, in the same month, the annual inflation rate reached 2.1%. Romania is followed by Bulgaria and Estonia in the classification of EU members with the highest annual inflation rates.
EU Council — The Romanian Finance Minister Eugen Teodorovici on Monday said that Romania would have the role of mediator in its capacity as president of the EU Council in the first 6 months of 2019. He said that Romania should have a balanced approach in promoting the European interests. Romania’s responsibility will be great as, through the Finance Ministry, it will also hold the presidency of the Board of Governors of the European Investment Bank, minister Teodorovici added. (news updated by Lacramioara Simion)
