6 March, 2019

A look at the main stories in Romania today.

Newsroom, 06.03.2019, 13:43

Budget.
The Constitutional Court of Romania has dismissed a challenge by president
Klaus Iohannis referring to this year’s state budget bill, ruling that the
legislation in question is constitutional. In his challenge, the president
argued, among others, that the passing of the bill infringed on the role and
responsibilities of the Fiscal Council which first had to issue an opinion on
all the amendments admitted during the parliamentary debates. Klaus Iohannis
also believed the budget bill ran counter to the country’s Constitution in that
in a EU member state the provisions of the EU treaties and the other obligatory
EU regulations take precedence over internal legislation, in keeping with the
accession agreement. The president also criticised the budget bill as
unrealistic.

Talks. The Romanian prime minister Viorica Dancila is in Brussels today
and tomorrow for talks with representatives of EU institutions. Today she is
due to meet the first vice-president of the European Commission Frans
Timmermans to discuss the recent changes to the justice legislation in Romania.
She will also have talks with the Commission’s chief Brexit negotiator Michel
Barnier ahead of the UK’s scheduled date for leaving the European Union, March
29th. Talks will focus on the protection of the rights of EU
citizens. Dancila is also expected to attend two events on equality of chances
and the promotion of women’s rights. This year’s edition of the Women’s
European Council is held in partnership with Romania’s presidency of the
Council of the EU and the European Parliament and looks at ways to improve
women’s representation in politics and in leadership positions.

Brexit. EU and UK negotiators today resume Brexit talks in
Brussels. According to Radio Romania’s correspondent in London, the Brexit
secretary Stephen Barclay and the UK attorney-general Geoffrey Cox
are seeking guarantees that the Irish border Brexit backstop is only a
temporary solution. These guarantees are important for the British government ahead
of a new Brexit deal vote in the House of Commons on 12th of March. To
woo MPs, prime minister Theresa May is today expected to offer more powers to
Parliament with respect to regulating workers’ rights post-Brexit.

Vote. A plenary session of the Chamber of
Deputies in Bucharest has been suspended due to a lack of quorum. Its agenda
today featured a vote on a no-confidence motion initiated by the opposition
against the justice minister Tudorel Toader. Obedience, lying, irresponsibility
and ill-faith are the cause for bringing justice to its knees, say the
signatories of the motion, the National Liberal Party and the Save Romania
Union. An independent supported by the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, the
junior partner in the ruling coalition, Toader has also come under criticism
from the Social Democrats, the main force in government, as well as from the
Democratic Union of Ethnic Hungarians in Romania, who support the government in
Parliament. Even if the motion passes, only prime minister Viorica Dancila can
decide if minister Toader is dismissed. The leader of the Social Democratic
Party Liviu Dragnea says a decision may be taken when the prime minister
returns from her trip abroad.

Exercise. Two Romanian war ships are taking part this week in manoeuvres at sea together with two Turkish military vessels as part of the Mavi Vatan exercise conducted by the Turkish Navy in the Black Sea, the Sea of Marmara, the Mediterranean Sea and the Aegean Sea, the chief of staff of the Romanian Navy has said. The two ships will carry out exercises in the Romanian territorial and international waters aimed at deterring asymmetric threats. The activity forms part of the provisions of the strategic partnership signed by Turkey and Romania in 2011. The bilateral training activities in which Romanian Navy military are also involved are included in a set of measures to discourage threats and risks to the security of NATO states, measures adopted at the NATO summit held in Brussels last year.

Volleyball. The Romanian women’s
volleyball side CSM Alba Blaj will be
facing the Italian side Yamamay e-work Busto Arsizio in the final of the CEV
Cup, the second European competition. In the semifinals, CSM Alba Blaj defeated
another Romanian side, Stiinta Bacau, while Yamamay e-work Busto Arsizio
defeated the Hungarian side Swietelsky Bekescsaba. Last year, Alba played the
Champions League final, which they lost in Bucharest to the Turkish side VakifBank Istanbul.