23 January, 2019

PM Viorica Dancila travels to Brussels to present the priorities of the Romanian presidency of the Council of the EU.

Newsroom, 23.01.2019, 13:46

Union. Various events are
being held across Romania to celebrate the 160th anniversary of the
Union of the Romanian Principalities. On the 24th of January 1859,
the elective assemblies of Moldavia and Wallachia elected the same ruler,
Alexander Ioan Cuza, an event followed by the extensive modernisation of the
new state. President Klaus Iohannis is today laying flowers at Cuza’s tomb in
Iasi, in the east. He will also give an address at an event to mark the
declaration of the city of Iasi a historical capital of Romania. Other events
held throughout the country include the laying of flowers, exhibitions and
street performances. We recall that the Great Union took place 100 years ago,
on 1st of December 1918, when all Romanian historical provinces were
united under Bucharest’s authority.

Trip. Romania’s prime minister
Viorica Dancila today begins a two-day working visit to Brussels where she will
present the priorities of the Romanian presidency of the Council of the
European Union as part of a plenary meeting of the European Economic and Social
Committee. She is also expected to meet NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg at the NATO
headquarters in Brussels. The two officials will review the main subjects on
the NATO agenda, with emphasis on the points of interest for Romania and the
latter’s contribution to the implementation of allied policies and decisions.
During her stay in Brussels, Dancila will also attend an official event to mark
International Holocaust Remembrance Day hosted by the European Jewish Congress
under the patronage of the president of the European Parliament Antonio Tajani.
She is also expected to attend a meeting of the European Socialists.

Priorities. The Romanian ministers
continue to present, in the specialised committees of the European Parliament,
the priorities of Romania’s presidency of the Council of the European Union in
their respective areas. In the Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs, the Romanian justice minister Tudorel Toader
said one of the objectives of the Romanian term in office is to contribute to enhancing
citizens’ trust in the act of justice. He said Romania would not stray from the
principles of the rule of law. Other priorities mentioned by Toader are the
creation of a European prosecutor’s office and the appointment of a European
chief prosecutor. The Romanian presidency of the Council of the European Union
will work towards a prosperous, safe and united Europe, one that is closer to
its citizens and also an important actor at a global level, the Romanian
interior minister Carmen Dan told the same committee. She emphasised that the
Romanian presidency of the Council of the European Union would give special
attention to the consolidation of internal security, the security of EU’s
external borders, the management of migration, visa and asylum policies and
civil protection in the community bloc, while always seeking for more unity and
cohesion in order to address better the fears and interests of European citizens.

Flu. 29 people died because of the flu in Romania this
season. The authorities warn that Romania is on the verge of an epidemic, and
the best method of protection is vaccination. The health minister Sorina Pintea
has said that by the end of the week, some 10,000 additional doses of flu
vaccine would be distributed around the country. Meanwhile, an increasing
number of hospitals are considering restricting visitor access to prevent the
spread of the flu.

Waste. 487 kg of municipal waste was
generated on average per person in the European Union in 2017. This figure is
272 kg in Romania, according to data published by Eurostat. Denmark, Cyprus,
Germany, Luxembourg and Malta have generated more than 600 kg of municipal
waste per person. Romania is in the last position in the European Union in
terms of waste recycling, with only 20 kg per person, compared with a European
average of 144 kg per person.

Tennis. The 17-year-old Romanian
tennis player Filip Jianu has today reached the quarterfinals of the junior
singles and the semifinals of the junior doubles at the Australian Open in
Melbourne, the first Grand Slam of the year. In the singles, Jianu defeated the
American player Toby Alex Kodat in straight sets and will next face another
American player, the 8th seed Cannon Kingsley. In the doubles, the
second seed Romanian-Spanish pair Filip Jianu and Nicolas Alvarez Varona
defeated the all-Australian pair Tristan Schoolkate and Dan Sweeny to advance
to the semifinals.