August 20, 2024

A roundup of domestic and international news

Newsroom, 20.08.2024, 13:55

Geneva – The geopolitical environment is marked by mistrust and disrespect for the international order, which leads to the escalation of regional conflicts and a new arms race, said the Romanian Foreign Minister, Luminiţa Odobescu. The head of Romanian diplomacy is participating, until Friday, in the Conference of States Parties (CSP10) to the Arms Trade Treaty (ATT), which is being held in Geneva, under the presidency of Romania. In her address, the Romanian minister marked the celebration of 10 years since the entry into force of the Arms Trade Treaty, underlining its essential role in the current geopolitical context, as well as the importance of cooperation between all actors involved in reducing human suffering, promoting peace, security and international stability. Also, Luminiţa Odobescu pointed out the priorities of the Romanian Presidency of the CSP10, exercised until August 23, 2024, which include encouraging the dynamism of the dialogue between the states parties regarding the effective implementation of the Treaty, universalization activities and measures to increase the transparency of conventional arms exports and imports.

Agriculture – Romania is safe from the point of view of food security, even if this year was a dry one, the Agriculture Minister, Florin Barbu, said on Tuesday in a specialized conference. According to him, Romania obtained a production of almost 1.7 million tons of wheat more than last year, and it will have a very good corn crop. Florin Barbu also pointed out that the agriculture ministry must take urgent measures, because this year, due to the climate change and drought, more than two million hectares have been affected throughout the country. He also mentioned the importance of investments in the irrigation system in Romania, stating that currently there are over 1.6 million hectares rehabilitated and irrigated. According to the National Institute of Statistics, last year Romania obtained a wheat production of over 9.6 million tons, from an area of ​​2.2 million hectares, while the production of corn kernels was over 8.5 million tons from almost 2.4 million hectares.

Inflation – The annual inflation rate in the European Union in July went up to 2.8% from 2.6% in June, data released on Tuesday by the EU statistical office, Eurostat, reports. The EU members with the highest inflation rates last year were Romania (5.8%), Belgium (5.4%) and Hungary (4.1%). The EU countries with the lowest inflation rates were Finland (0.5%), Latvia (0.8%), and Denmark (1%).  As compared to the month of June, the inflation rate went down in nine EU members, remained stable in four countries and grew in other 14. In July Romania reported an inflation rate of 5.8% from 5.3%.

Visit – The Romanian Defense Minister, Angel Tîlvăr, on Monday received the official visit of the Minister of Defense Pål Jonson and the Minister of Civil Defense Carl-Oskar Bohlin from the Kingdom of Sweden. High on the agenda of talks were the security situation in the Black Sea and Baltic Sea regions, against the backdrop of Russia’s war of aggression against Ukraine, cooperation within NATO, the implementation of the decisions of the Washington Summit, the evolution of projects developed within the European Union, as well as participation in missions and operations under the EU aegis. “Sweden has a significant contribution to Euro-Atlantic security, once it has joined NATO. We act together to promote and implement allied measures on the entire eastern flank of the North Atlantic Alliance and to strengthen bilateral cooperation, including in terms of preparing our armies for the challenges of the future”, said Angel Tîlvăr. The ministers reiterated their constant support for Ukraine, as well as for the Republic of Moldova, the three officials highlighting the importance of maintaining a constant political and military dialogue, in order to streamline and harmonize common efforts in the field of defense.

Brussels – The main challenge regarding next year’s EU budget is identifying the necessary funds to finance recovery plans and maintaining budget allocations for traditional European programs, said Victor Negrescu, the chief negotiator of the European Parliament on the Union’s budget for 2025, in a social media post. The Romanian MEP recalls that the amount initially foreseen for 2025 for the financing of the recovery and resilience mechanism was 2,677.8 million Euros, while the real estimated costs are almost double. Victor Negrescu claims that the current situation is generated by the high costs of interests for the recovery mechanism, by the emergence of new priorities and programs generated by the new challenges in the field of defense, international and industrial, by the amendments brought through the modification of the multiannual financial framework, as well as by the need to strengthen the borders and the security of the member states. The framework document that underlies the negotiations between the political groups in the European Parliament is to be presented by the end of August, and in October the EP will approve its budget plan so that it can be negotiated in November with the representatives of the EU Council. (LS)