February 21, 2015 UPDATE
A roundup of domestic and international news
Roxana Vasile, 21.02.2015, 20:11
Oil giant Chevron has announced it is relinquishing its interests in shale gas concessions in Romania. The US company did the same with similar projects in Lithuania, Ukraine and Poland. In late January, Chevron, which is the second largest energy corporation in the US, announced it would invest only 35 billion dollars in oil exploration programs in Romania in 2015, 13% less than in 2014, and would favor those presenting most profitable opportunities. The Wall Street Journal recalls the disappointing outcome of the shale gas explorations, the locals’ opposition to hydraulic fracturing and the moratorium imposed by countries such as France and Germany on that technique.
Romania ensures 4% of the EU’s agricultural production, ranking 8th after France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Great Britain, the Netherlands and Poland, whose agricultural sectors produce over 10 billion dollars a year. According to data made public by Eurostat, the statistical office of the European Union, three quarters of Romania’s agricultural output is vegetal, while at the level of the whole of the EU, cereals, fruit and vegetables account for little over 50%. As for the share of animal products, namely meat and milk, Romania stands below the European average.
The Eurozone finance ministers have reached an agreement on the extension by four months of the financial rescue plan for Greece, after which a fresh agreement will be negotiated. In exchange for that, the Greek authorities have pledged to keep the economy stable and to come up with their own reform program by Monday. In this way, Greece no longer risks to default on payments and to even leave the Eurozone. International financial markets have had positive reactions to the extension agreement. Wall Street stock quotes went up when it became clear that Greece would stay in the Eurozone at least for a while. A new agreement will be discussed in July.
The US and Great Britain are considering further sanctions against Russia due to its “craven behaviour” in Ukraine, said in London on Saturday the US Secretary of State John Kerry. He condemned Russia’s ongoing aggression in eastern Ukraine and the unacceptable way in which the ceasefire agreement, signed in Minsk, had been systematically breached. Kiev and the West are accusing Moscow of support for the pro-Russia separatists, by providing them with troops and weapons. Russian President Vladimir Putin has constantly denied such support, even though NATO has firmly stated that Russian special forces, artillery and air-defence units are still extremely active in Ukraine. The conflict in the east of that country has killed some 5,700 people so far.
Washington is considering a slower pull-out of its troops deployed in Afghanistan, as compared to the initial timeline, to make sure the progress made on the ground is not jeopardized, said in Kabul on Saturday the US Secretary of Defence Ashton Carter. Under the current plan, the 10,000-strong US force is to drop roughly 5000 by the end of 2015 and then further down to ‘normal’, which is diplomatic representation at embassy level. The plan might change, Carter said. The US official is on his first formal visit abroad after becoming the Pentagon chief on February 17th.
The French-Mauritian film Timbuktu” by Abderrahmane Sissako has won 7 Cesar awards in Paris, among which the trophies for best film and best director. A celebration of tolerance against obscurantism, the film, which is also running for an Oscar for best foreign film, was inspired by real events occurring in 2012, when the north of Mali was taken over by Jihadist groups affiliated to Al Qaeda. The film has also won the best screenplay, editing, sound, cinematography and music awards.
Romanian tennis player Simona Halep on Saturday won the WTA tournament in Dubai, with over 2.5 million dollars in prize money. In the tournament’s final she defeated in two sets, 6-4, 7-6, the Czech Karolina Pliskova after one hour and 47 minutes. For this 10th trophy in her career, Simona Halep got 900 WTA points and 456,000 dollars. She also managed to repeat her best performance, achieved last year, when she won a Premier 5 tournament in Doha. Next week the Romanian tennis player will play in Doha again, to defend her 2014 title. Halep is the tournament’s second seed, after Petra Kvitova of the Czech Republic.
