May 22, 2025 UPDATE

A roundup of local and world news

Newsroom, 22.05.2025, 20:00

ELECTION The Constitutional Court of Romania Thursday validated the results of the presidential election, won by the independent mayor of Bucharest, Nicuşor Dan. On Sunday, in the decisive round of voting, Dan defeated the leader of AUR, George Simion. The solemn session at the Constitutional Court was attended by the interim president, Ilie Bolojan, and several political leaders. In a short address, Dan said that as a president he will fight for the consolidation of public institutions, for the economic prosperity of the country, he will be a partner of the business environment and a guarantor of civil liberties. Subsequently, the joint permanent bureaus of the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate decided that Parliament will convene on Monday, at 12:00, Romanian time, for the swearing-in of the president-elect. The swearing-in is then recorded in a declaration by Parliament, through which it takes note of the start of the new president’s term in office.

FINANCE Romania has already secured almost half of its financing needs for this year, said the director general of the State Treasury, Ştefan Nanu. He explained that investors approach the current economic situation with moderate optimism and are waiting for a new Cabinet to be appointed and to announce the plan for carrying on the fiscal adjustment agreed on with the European Commission. Nanu also added that all Eurobond issues in international markets depend on Romania’s investment-grade rating, as this means stability and even a drop in financing costs at all levels.

MIDDLE EAST The Romanian foreign ministry has asked the Israeli ambassador to Bucharest for clarifications regarding an incident that took place on Wednesday in the city of Jenin, in the occupied West Bank, where Israeli soldiers opened fire at a group of diplomats visiting the area jointly with Palestinian Authority officials. Among the diplomats was the head of the Romanian Representative Office in Ramallah. The foreign ministry also notified the Israeli diplomat of Romania’s “serious concern” with the incident. Many European countries, including Italy, France, Germany and the United Kingdom, criticised the incident. The EU high representative for foreign affairs and security policy, Kaja Kallas, indicated that any attempt on the lives of diplomats is unacceptable. Israel said it regretted the incident, but claimed that the army started shooting after the group moved away from the approved route, reaching a restricted area. Jenin is the site of an ongoing Israeli military operation, and the delegation was there to assess the humanitarian situation.

AWARD The President of the European Parliament, Roberta Metsola, Thursday received the Timisoara Award for European Values, the highest distinction granted by this Romanian city to international personalities who actively support community values. Roberta Metsola was nominated for this award for her courage and firm attitude in times of crisis, for her support for Ukraine and the Republic of Moldova, and for her efforts towards Romania’s Schengen accession. At the end of the ceremony, Metsola stated that the award is not only a recognition of her work and that of her colleagues in the European Parliament, but also a signal regarding the need to defend European values, democracy and freedom. As for last Sunday’s presidential election, the head of the European Parliament said that Romanians sent a pro-European signal. Roberta Metsola mentioned that she met with Romania’s president-elect, Nicuşor Dan, in Bucharest on Wednesday and that she is eager to start working with him. The award received by the European official comes with a EUR 30,000 payment, which Roberta Metsola asked to be postponed until next year.

ANTI-CORRUPTION Anti-corruption prosecutors are conducting searches at the head offices of the National Tax Administration Agency in Bucharest, as well as at individual residences and offices of trade companies in Bucharest and Ilfov and Giurgiu counties (south), in a case in which tax agency officials are accused of protecting ridesharing companies that did not pay taxes. The investigated corruption offences, including influence peddling, were allegedly committed between March and May 2025, to protect and favour individuals and legal entities in avoiding the payment of taxes, duties and contributions to the state budget, with a negative impact on public services and eroding trust in public institutions and public administration, the National Anticorruption Directorate reports.

REPORT Romania’s interim president, Ilie Bolojan, presented a report on his 100 days in office, a period during which he focused on ensuring the country’s stability and organising the presidential election. He said the election had been well organised and had reflected the will of the citizens, who turned out in large numbers to the polls. Bolojan emphasised that another priority had been to ensure domestic stability in the face of a substantial budget deficit. He pointed out that his interim mandate was also focused on two important areas: foreign policy and defence. Romania had clear and consistent views on the war in Ukraine, and Bucharest supported a just peace and respect for international law, Bolojan added.

RECOVERY Romania should not wait for a possible extension of the National Recovery and Resilience Program proposed by the European Parliament, but instead should focus on completing the projects included in the financing plan, said the interim minister of European funds, Marcel Boloş. He mentioned that the renegotiation of the NRRP with the Community Executive is aimed at full absorption of the allocated non-reimbursable funds, at keeping the loan component with favourable interest rates and at restructuring the next payment requests. Boloş explained that Bucharest intends to submit three such requests by August and that by reconfiguring the last payment requests, Romania will be able to receive the remaining EUR 18 billion that the European Commission has earmarked for Romania under the scheme. (AMP)