May 13, 2014
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România Internațional, 13.05.2014, 00:11
PARLIAMENT – The centre-right National Liberal Party, in opposition, tabled a motion of censure in Parliament today against the left-of-centre government headed by the Social Democrat Victor Ponta. The text was also signed by MPs from the Liberal Democratic Party, People’s Movement and the Party of the People, all in opposition. The authors claim the current Government is pushing Romania into what they call “the dark and corrupt” period of 2001-2004, or even the times before 1989, when the Communist Party had the entire country in its grip. The signatories accuse PM Ponta of corruption, hypocrisy, of undermining the judiciary and of using budget resources for election purposes.
POST STRIKE – The employees of the Romanian Post Corporation are on work-to-rule today, to protest work conditions and the way in which the company is managed. Trade union leaders also say they want a 20% pay raise. Post office staff will not walk out, but will wear white arm bands at work. This is part of a series of protests launched last week. The privatisation of the Romanian Post Corporation failed last year, and the management says personnel downsizing was necessary. In late March, the company had debts of around 45 million euros.
DIPLOMACY – The Romanian foreign minister, Titus Corlatean, is on a visit to Luxembourg on Tuesday, at the invitation of his counterpart, Jean Asselborn. The agenda of the visit also includes a meeting with the Chamber of Deputies speaker, Mars Di Bartolomeo. The talks will focus on bilateral cooperation, particularly in the economic sector. European topics will also be discussed, including the elections for the European Parliament due this month, the Eastern Partnership and the developments in Ukraine.
MOLDOVA – The president of the European Council, Herman Van Rompuy, is on a visit to Chisinau, where he is to meet president Nicolae Timofti, PM Iurie Leanca and the Parliament speaker Igor Corman. The visit of the European official takes place in the context of particularly close relations between this ex-Soviet republic and the EU. Moldova has recently seen visa requirements for its citizens lifted, and it is soon to sign the EU association agreement. Political analysts in Chisinau believe the forthcoming period will bring increased pressure from Russia to prevent the signing of the EU association agreement.
EUROBAROMETER – 70% of Romanians are optimistic or very optimistic as regards the future of the EU, according to a recent Eurobarometer report. The report indicates that only Poland and Malta have such high confidence rates, whereas Italy and Greece are at the opposite pole, with 41% and 37% respectively. On the other hand, almost half of the Europeans believe the peak of the impact of the economic crisis on jobs is over. In fact, in 20 member states, most citizens say they expect the economic situation in their home countries to improve in the coming year.
UKRAINE – Russia has today said that the new EU sanctions against it would affect the peace efforts in Ukraine, and called on the West to persuade Kiev to hold talks on the country’s new structure before the early presidential election of May 25. Moscow accused the Ukrainian authorities of declining a true dialogue with the pro-Russian separatists in the east of the country. The German foreign minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has said in Kiev today, after talks with PM Arseniy Yatsenyuk, that the early presidential election to take place on May 25 in Ukraine will be critical to ending the crisis and restoring peace. The European official expressed support for Kiev’s plan for nation-wide dialogue, involving the pro-Russian separatist regions in east Ukraine as well. The separatists in the Donetk and Luhansk regions demanded to join Russia after Sunday’s referendums on their independence from Ukraine. Ukraine, the EU, OSCE and the USA declared these ballots illegal.
ISRAEL – Israel’s ex-PM Ehud Olmert was sentenced on Tuesday to 6 years in prison on two counts of bribery in a corruption case. This is the first time an Israeli head of government is convicted of criminal offences, Reuters reports. Ehud Olmert (68) took over the Prime Minister seat from Ariel Sharon in March 2006. The leader of the centrist party Kadima until 2008, he had to leave both the party and the government further to his involvement in several corruption scandals. In September 2012, he received a one-year suspended sentence and a 15 thousand euro fine for abusing his office.
