Preparations for the EU summit in Sibiu
The preparations for the upcoming EU summit in Sibiu are almost ready, and security measures are extremely tight.
Corina Cristea, 06.05.2019, 14:16
A representative city in Transylvania, the winner of the 2007 title of European capital of culture thanks largely to its Saxon heritage and a host to wide-scale annual events such as the International Theatre Festival and the Astra Film Festival, Sibiu is now making its final preparations to host a different kind of event to be held on Europe Day on the 9th of May. The event in question is the summer summit of the EU heads of state and government in the 27 format, without the UK, which Romania is hosting as current holder of the rotating presidency of the Council of the EU.
It’s a very important summit, as it will decide what Europe will look like in the next years. The idea behind the summit, called by the president of the European Commission Jean-Claude Juncker in his 2017 state of the union address, is that EU leaders should agree on the principle of a future more united, stronger and more democratic European Union, in the context of an increasingly unsafe world.
Safety is, in fact, the operative word these days in Sibiu, so security measures are extremely strict. The Romania-EU 2019 inter-ministerial security committee has established that the plan of action ensuring the protection of the heads of state and government and of other officials attending the summit is to be implemented gradually beginning on Monday.
The city has been filled with high-performing CC tv cameras and the unprecedented measure has been taken to close all schools, primary schools and faculties in Sibiu all week. The open-air terraces of all restaurants in the historical centre are closed until after the summit, and several streets will be closed for car traffic on the 8th and 9th of May. Even pedestrian traffic will be restricted on certain streets in the historical centre with the exception of the people living in the area, the employees working nearby and the tourists staying at the hotels and guesthouses in the area, based on a batch and the ID card.
On the day of the summit, the people of Sibiu will, however, have partial access to the central area, but only after undergoing security screening. A special corridor will be organised in the middle of the road linking the airport to the centre of the city, where the summit is held. The nearby area will be filled with white tents used by the media and the 900 reporters and 100 interpreters who will come to Sibiu.
The EU summit will be celebrated publicly on the evening of the 9th of May with an artistic show. Two special gastronomic events are held around the date of the summit, given that the county of Sibiu this year holds the title of European region of gastronomy.
