March 10, 2023 UPDATE

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Newsroom, 10.03.2023, 20:00

ECONOMY Net
investments in the Romanian economy in 2022 were over EUR 30 bln, up 8.5% since
the previous year, PM Nicolae Ciucă announced. He says this proves the positive
impact of the measures taken by his Cabinet on the economy. Investment in
development, the PM also says in a Facebook post, will preserve jobs and
generate new ones, and in the long term it will contribute to higher revenues. Other
data made public by the National Statistics Institute, which the PM says
confirm the success of the Romanian economy in 2022, are a 4.8% GDP growth, foreign
direct investments of EUR 11.3 bln, a 73% rate of EU fund absorption and
exports amounting to EUR 85 bln. On the other hand, Romania’s public debt
dropped in December 2022 to 47.2% of GDP, from 48.3% in November 2022 and 48.9% in 2021, the finance
ministry announced. In 2023, expenditure for public investments is expected to
account for 7.2% of GDP.

VISIT After his visit to Japan, president Klaus Iohannis travelled
to Singapore, where he had talks with his counterpart, Halimah Yacob. The Romanian
president highlighted Romania’s goal to step up bilateral relations with
Singapore. Additionally, president Iohannis spoke of a set of common goals
pursued by both presidents, such as inclusion policies, economic and social
development and green transition. He voiced Romania’s special interest in fully
tapping the potential of bilateral relations, particularly in the economic and
investment area, and underscored Bucharest’s objective to attract investment
from Singapore, especially since Romania is the third-largest EU provider of IT
services to that country. In turn, the president of Singapore, Halimah Yacob, highlighted
the importance of the bilateral relation considering Romania’s growing profile
at EU and NATO levels, particularly in the geopolitical context generated by
the war in Ukraine. President Yacob also addressed the need to boost investment
and two-way trade, considering the opportunities provided by such sectors as
IT&C, cyber security and tourism. The Romanian head of state also had talks
with Singapore’s PM Lee Hsien Loong, who emphasised the convergence of views and
interests of the two countries in the current geopolitical context, and the
importance of respecting the rule-based international order centred on the UN
Charter.

BYSTROYE The biodiversity of the Danube Delta is not affected by
dredging works on the Bystroye Canal, and no significant water flow changes on
the river Danube have been reported compared to statistics published in recent
years, says the Environment Minister Tanczos Barna after the first measurements
conducted by Romanian authorities on the branch of Chilia and Romanian sections
of the Danube. The Romanian official said Ukrainian authorities must provide a
written consent before the three ships of the Transport Ministry can finalize
depth measurements across the entire section of the Chilia branch, run a new
analysis of water flows and provide their final report. Authorities from
Romania and Ukraine have agreed to measure the depth of Danube River canals
after Kyiv started dredging the Bystroye canal. The Ukrainian Infrastructure Ministry
said that, once dredging works were completed, the depth of Bystroye grew from
3.9 to 6.5 meters. Kyiv has however denied that the works violated any
agreement. Bucharest wants to make sure Ukraine’s operation does not impact
ecosystems in the Danube Delta, a protected UNESCO World Heritage site.

REFUGEES A centre for Ukrainian refugees was opened on Friday within
the Edmond Nicolau Technical College in Bucharest. The centre is
the outcome of a partnership between Bucharest’s District 2 Hall, UNICEF and Habitat
for Humanity. Its 3 floors, totalling 2,000 sq m, can host 100 people. The
district mayor says refugees may live, cook, socialise here, and that special
areas are arranged for children to do their homework.

MOLDOVA The US Administration will provide the Republic of Moldova
with USD 300 mln in assistance for the energy sector and will share information
with this country in a move to fight Russia’s attempts to destabilise it, the
White House announced on Friday. The national security spokesperson John Kirby
told the media that, although there is no imminent military threat against
Moldova, the US believes Russia is seeking to weaken this small country and
bring in a more pro-Russian government. He also said Washington has confidence
in Moldova’s democratic and economic institutions and in their capacity to
withstand these threats. We will continue to provide significant support, said Kirby.
Protests against the government and president Maia Sandu, organised in
particular by the pro-Russian party Sor, have been a regular occurrence in
Chişinǎu for several weeks. (AMP)